Portugal has opened its borders for American tourists who can now enter the country with only a negative Coronavirus test result, which should be provided upon arrival.
According to a press release issued by the Portuguese government on Tuesday, travellers two years of age and older must be tested with a PCR test within 72 hours before departure or a rapid antigen test within 24 hours of boarding, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
However, there are still Coronavirus restrictions being applied in many Portugal regions. For example, masks are mandatory at beaches while entering and moving around, and a social distance of 1.5 meters (about five feet) must be applied while lounging. Social distancing and face covers are also mandatory in closed public spaces.
United Airlines is the first US flight to resume travelling to Portugal this summer, as the company announced. The daily flights will be departing from New York, and Newark, New Jersey, and are set to begin on July 1.
Besides Portugal, American tourists are welcomed in many European countries due to the country’s vaccination rollout rates, which are among the top ones in the world.
Spain has also opened its borders for US citizens that are vaccinated with Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Janssen, Sinopharm, or Sinovac-CoronaVac. A document proving that at least 14 days have passed since the last shot or the single-shot vaccine has been administered to the holder.
For American tourists interested in visiting France, the country permits visits by only providing proof of vaccination with one of the European Medicine Agency authorised vaccines. For unvaccinated travellers, US citizens must provide a PCR or antigen test taken 72 hours before arrival.
Italy too allows restriction-free entry for vaccinated American tourists who have travelled through COVID-tested flights, approved by the Italian Ministry of Health that imposes testing on travellers before departure.
The only Italian companies running these flights are Alitalia and Delta, whereas the American flights operating these flights are:
New York – Milan Malpensa
New York – Rome Fiumicino
Atlanta – Rome Fiumicino
Atlanta – Milan Malpensa
Denmark and Greece are both fully open for American tourists as long as they provide vaccination proof that the holder has been vaccinated with one of the EMA-authorised vaccines at least 14 days before arriving at the destination.
The Irish government also welcomes US citizens restriction-free once the EU COVID-19 passport will be implemented, which is set to happen from July 19. For American tourists willing to visit Cyprus for summer vacation, the authorities require only a PCR test documentation that proves the test was taken 72 hours before the departure.
Other countries allowing American tourists to enter the country without undergoing quarantine are Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Malta, Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro and Ukraine. Croatia still has some strict restrictions in place for American travellers, although these restrictions may soon change with the most recent update of the EU recommendation for reopening the borders to epidemiologically safe third countries, in which the US has been added.