The coronavirus pandemic didn’t put an end to spring break travel in 2021. The Transportation Security Administration recently reported five (now eight) days in a row where more than 1 million people traveled by air.
And one of those days — March 12 — had the highest number of travelers since March 2020 with 1,357,111 travelers, according to CBS News.
People clearly are starting to travel en masse again despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Vaccinations might be encouraging people to hit the airways more often. But is it safe?
Here’s a quick breakdown of whether it’s OK to travel — and how to figure out where you can go.
Is domestic travel OK?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not recommend travel right now. The CDC says any sort of travel increases the chances of infecting others with COVID-19, or contracting the virus yourself.
- Not enough people in the country have received the COVID-19 vaccine yet to justify travel, according to the CDC.
That said, President Joe Biden — who has been fully vaccinated — has started to travel through parts of the country (he has visited Pennsylvania and Georgia), according to Yahoo News.
CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a recent White House briefing that too much travel could lead to a new surge, CBS News reports.
- “I’m pleading with you, for the sake of our nation’s health,” Walensky said. “These should be warning signs for all of us. Cases climbed last spring, they climbed again in the summer, they will climb now if we stop taking precautions when we continue to get more and more people vaccinated.”
So where can you travel?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have a number of destination recommendations for people right now. The website offers a clear breakdown of the risk level for each country. It also gives some information on each region and what restrictions you might face there.
- You can also visit the website CovidControls.co, which will track countries based on vaccination rates and rules for entry. It also updates each country’s lockdown status, so you can see which areas you can and can’t travel to.
Remember: You may need a test
Some countries require a negative COVID-19 test result before you travel. For example, the United Kingdom and Peru require negative tests and pre-travel quarantines, according to National Geographic. Countries such as Mexico and Costa Rica will require a temperature check, too.