RISKS STILL CURB OVERSEAS TRAVEL More countries open, but pros say there’s no hurry
Liz Warden and her husband booked their summer honeymoon to Croatia last November, two months after tying the knot.
The Brooklyn newlyweds had already paid upward of $4,000 for the 16-day trip — a hefty sum for Warden, who works at a nonprofit, and her husband, Shawn McDonald, a teacher at a charter school.
Despite widespread coronavirus bans on international travel from the U.S., a trip to Croatia still seemed promising: the country was gearing up to officially reopen July 1 with relatively few restrictions.
But the couple — who were set to fly out of Newark July 3 — decided to postpone.
“It’s really disappointing [but] it was irresponsible. We thought, we live in New York City, we should not be coming to your country,” said Warden, 31, who lives with McDonald in Bedford-Stuyvesant.
“It [also] didn’t make sense to go all the way over there when they’re literally just starting to manage tourism and figure all of that out,” she said. “It’s kind of a waste of money.”
While many international destinations are still off-limits to Americans due to high numbers of COVID-19 in the U.S. — particularly New York, which has had over 215,000 to date — more countries have opened their borders this month, with conditions.
Visitors to Ecuador, Ireland and Ukraine must quarantine for 14 days upon arrival. Popular tropical vacation spots like the Bahamas and Barbados require travelers to present proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within a week and 72 hours, respectively.
Other destinations like Kosovo and North Macedonia have almost no requirements apart from wearing masks and social-distancing regulations.
A handy interactive map from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — which generally advises Americans against nonessential travel — provides up-to-date info on new coronavirus cases for every country. The U.S. Department of State also has a directory with more details on COVID-19 restrictions and information for those returning