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Following a sustained period of low cases and good overall handling of the Covid-19 pandemic, this week the United States Department of State has lowered the travel advisory for Singapore from Level 3 to Level 1, the lowest rating available.
On August 6th Singapore was given a Level 3 advisory rating, which warns travelers to reconsider travel, as a result of the pandemic. However, on December 9th, Singapore was awarded the Level 1 rating, which demonstrates their effective handling of the pandemic.
Covid-19 In Singapore
Whilst the situation may be under control now, Singapore has undergone tough periods in the last year when it came to handling the spread of the virus. The country saw large spikes in April and August, which saw more than a thousand cases a day on some occasion. However, more recently, the numbers have fallen sharply.
Since the start of October, the daily number of cases of Covid-19 in Singapore has fallen, only managing to reach double digits a handful of times and staying below ten cases a day for the majority of the past two months. Singapore has also seen several days without locally transmitted cases, which reflects the impact of their effective policies such as mandatory mask-wearing and the TraceTogether app.
With their impressive Covid-19 statistics and ability to halt locally transmitted cases, Singapore appears to be one of the safest places to travel to during the pandemic, which is why it’s of little surprise that they are now only deemed a Level 1 risk.
Other Countries With Level 1 Travel Advisories
Whilst most countries in the world were handed higher-level travel advisories when the pandemic started to worsen, there are only a handful that have managed to be moved up to a Level 1 warning.
Macau and Taiwan were handed Level 1 travel advisory status on August 6th, whilst New Zealand and Thailand were deemed to be fellow Level 1 countries on November 23rd. Each of these four countries have minimized the spread of the virus and are registering low cases figures, along with Singapore.
The next advisory rating on the Department of State website is Level 2, and there are currently 28 countries that have this rating. The rest are either Level 3 – which asks people to reconsider travel to the country – or Level 4, which explicitly tells travelers not to travel to those countries.
Is Singapore Open To Tourists?
At present, Singapore is not universally open to tourists. However, access to the country can be granted to tourists who meet certain criteria. For a full list of entry requirements for Singapore, please see here.
Singapore had an agreement in place for a travel bubble with Hong Kong. However, given Hong Kong’s most recent wave of Covid-19 cases, the plans for the travel bubble have been put on hold indefinitely. There was also talk of a further travel corridor with other Southeast Asian nations, yet nothing concrete has been decided.
What This Means For Travelers
Given the fact that Singapore still isn’t completely open for travelers, the news that it has been granted the lowest possible travel advisory isn’t likely to change much. However, it does suggest that Singapore is likely to be among the first countries to go “back to normal” and start allowing travelers in sooner than others. It is certainly worth keeping an eye on Singapore and seeing if any of its planned travel bubbles come to fruition, as they may prove to be possible ways to enter the country.
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Disclaimer: Current travel rules and restrictions can change without notice. The decision to travel is ultimately your responsibility. Contact your consulate and/or local authorities to confirm your nationality’s entry and/or any changes to travel requirements before traveling. Travel Off Path does not endorse traveling against government advisories
EdwardV
Sunday 13th of December 2020
Singapore is a wonderful place to visit. Clean, safe, friendly and world class attractions. English is one of their official languages always a huge plus. Great for 3-4 days but not much more than that unless you plan to immerse yourself. Not a cheap trip, but worth every penny. For me it’s always been a great side trip.