Further to my previously published guide to mask free destinations , a number of countries have joined the freeface bandwagon and abandoned the face covering dogma of the covid years.

Costa Rica 🇨🇷

The tropical paradise of Costa Rica is now fully unrestricted. There is no vaccination or test required for entry and tourists are no longer forced to buy overpriced health insurance to cover quarantine expenses.

Furthermore, mask wearing is now entirely optional in all settings.

Latvia 🇱🇻

Latvia has now joined its Baltic neighbour in abolishing the mask mandate for public transport, meaning that all everyday settings are now mask free.

Austria 🇦🇹

Following months of dragging its feet, Austria has suspended the mask mandate for shops and public transport, meaning that there are now no mask requirements in everyday life.

This, however, comes with a few caveats.

FFP2 masks (bird beaks) are still required in medical settings, which barring incidents most tourists will not need to access.

The Austrian government has backtracked a number of times on promised relaxations of the mask mandate and has explicitly stated that the present relaxation is only for a period of three months. Therefore, I have to advise treating this announcement with a modicum of scepticism. However, as I stated in my Lake Constance review, the new freeface culture has been almost universally embraced. I am therefore hopeful that the mask mandate will not be politically expedient to reimpose later.

Italy 🇮🇹

I was unsure whether to include Italy in this list, as the mandate is still officially in force, but is very widely expected to lapse on June 15.

After this date, the mask mandate for public transport and all businesses will expire, meaning tourists can go about their daily lives unmuzzled.

Italy is perhaps the most surprising addition to this list, as it has been an avid bastion of mask zealotry for the last two years.

I very much hope I don’t have to publish a retraction of this section after a hurried U-turn in the next 48 hours.

EDIT: In the few days since this article was published, the Italian government has backtracked and extended the mask mandate for public transport until September 30.

After two years, it appears that more and more countries are finally coming to their senses and ditching their mask mandates.

Here is a list of all countries, where you can enjoy fully mask free travel.

 

United Kingdom 🇬🇧

Following several months of indecision, England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 has been mask free for some months. In recent weeks, Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿, Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 and Northern Ireland󠁧󠁢󠁮󠁩󠁲󠁧󠁢󠁮󠁩󠁲 have finally fallen into line.

 

Ireland 🇮🇪

Ireland kept its mask mandate for public transport until quite recently, but is now fully mask free in all public spaces.

 

Switzerland 🇨🇭

Switzerland is now fully mask free, having dropped the requirement on public transport from April 1.

 

Sweden 🇸🇪

The poster child of freedom throughout the covid panic, Sweden has never had a mask mandate for any public place, indoors or out. Many Swedes do not even own a mask and you will very rarely see someone wearing one.

 

Denmark 🇩🇰

Denmark has been mask free since February, when the country dropped all covid related restrictions. Since then, very few people wear masks in any public setting.

 

Norway 🇳🇴

Norway dropped the requirement to wear face masks in public in February and is now fully unrestricted.

 

Iceland 🇮🇸

Iceland is another country which has been mask free for some time and has adopted a pragmatic approach to living with covid.

 

Finland 🇫🇮

Finland has now ended its general mask recommendation for public places, the last of the Nordic nations to do so. The country is now fully mask free.

 

Estonia 🇪🇪

Estonia has been mask free for several weeks in all public places.

 

Netherlands 🇳🇱

The Dutch scrapped their mask rules on public transport in March, the last area where masks were required.

 

Poland 🇵🇱

By all accounts, enforcement of Polands mask mandate was always patchy, but it has now been officially dropped.

 

Czech Republic 🇨🇿

Czech Republic ended its mask mandate for public transport on April 14.

 

Slovenia 🇸🇮

Wearing a face mask in Slovenia is no longer mandatory.

 

Romania 🇷🇴

The requirement to wear a mask in public buildings and transport expired in March.

 

Bulgaria 🇧🇬

Face masks are recommended, but not mandatory, when using public transport.

 

USA 🇺🇸

The USA no longer has a federal mask mandate, since a recent court decision overturning the CDC’s mandate for air, rail and bus travel. However, travellers are strongly advised to check any local mandates.

 

If you have any questions or know of any other mask free countries, please feel free to join our forums, where further updates will be posted.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has today announced that anyone entering the UK will be forced to take a PCR test within 2 days of arrival in the country and self isolate until a negative result is received.

Furthermore, the “red list” requiring 11 nights forcibly confined to a hotel room at a cost to the traveller of £2,285 has now been extended to arrivals from 10 Southern African countries. More countries will undoubtedly follow.

Additionally, face coverings will once again be mandatory in shops and on public transport throughout the country, unless a medical exemption is claimed.

Clearly, the UK is following continental Europe into the vortex of panic and is once again pulling up the drawbridge.

These measures will not be the last to be announced in the UK this Winter.

Feel free to discuss these measures on the UK forum.

Announcements of tightened covid restrictions in various European countries have been met with large scale protests across the continent.

I personally attended demonstrations and marches in Vienna and Bregenz, Austria, both of which were very well attended and focused heavily on Austria’s recently announced lockdown and the country’s unprecedented announcement that covid-19 vaccinations are to be made compulsory in the country from 1 February 2022. Heavy fines will be levied against those who do not comply and jail sentences are threatened against those who do not or cannot pay. Germany looks likely to follow suit, with Health Minister Jens Spahn quoted as saying that the majority of Germans would be “vaccinated, cured or dead” by the Spring.

Both of the demonstrations I attended in Austria were well organised and peaceful. The large crowds were extremely well behaved and I did not witness any violence, threatening behaviour or heavy handed police action at either venue.

I will post pictures and videos in the Austria forum shortly.

Protests also raged across Italy, Croatia, Belgium and The Netherlands, with one in Rotterdam sadly turning violent.

As I wrote earlier, the Winter lockdown season is well and truly under way in Europe. Additionally, governments across the continent are ramping up the pressure on citizens to accept a vaccination, with more and more basic rights and freedoms being removed from dissenters. As the continent moves deeper into the Winter, this situation can only deteriorate as panic spreads over rising case numbers. Restrictions will become tighter, lockdowns will be extended and protests will inevitably continue to erupt.

Europe can be a wonderful continent to visit during the winter months, with ski resorts, traditional Christmas markets and New Year concerts.

Sadly, this Winter is not the time even to think about enjoying any of those things.

Join the discussion on our covid forum.

 

 

 

The long awaited reopening of the USA to tourists travelling from Europe finally happened on November 8. Whereas previously, tourists wishing travel from the UK, Ireland and the Schengen zone had to spend 14 days in a third country prior to entering the USA, it is now possible to fly directly from the area to the USA.

However, the reopening comes with a caveat. Anyone entering the USA as a tourist must prove that they are fully vaccinated against Covid-19, as well as providing a negative test taken in the 3 days before travel. This means that if you are not willing to take a covid vaccination, you are quite simply not welcome in the USA. For many people this will be an instant deal breaker and we hope that this restriction will be a temporary one.

As for what to expect when you do arrive in the USA, it very much depends which part of the country you are visiting. It is no secret (and indeed no surprise) that American attitudes to the coronavirus pandemic have been somewhat polarised during the last 20 months. While some parts of the country have seen draconian restrictions equivalent to European style lockdowns, other parts of the country have suffered much less disruption. This holds true today, where certain states and counties are persisting with far reaching mask mandates, while in others, Covid is more or less forgotten. Last Winter, I spent 3 very pleasant months touring Florida and enjoying almost complete normality, while people further north were still being prevented from visiting their neighbours for coffee.

The contrast is not quite so stark now and most parts of the USA seem to be more or less ready to move on. However, the divisions are still there, most notably in respect to the thorny issue of mask mandates. The controversial face garments continue to pervade many parts of the country and remain as hotly contested a debate as they always were. The specific rules governing the wearing of masks, as well as other important considerations, are determined at state, county and city level. This means there may be one set of rules in one town, whereas things might look completely different 5 miles down the road.

My advice is to do diligent research and find a state and city where you can reasonably live with the specific rules. Florida and Texas seem to be the states where life has moved on the most and where restrictions are likely to be the least intrusive. They are the states which are on my radar this Winter.

Please share any questions or advice on our USA forum.

 

 

Once again, restrictions in several European countries are tightening up, suggesting that the continent has a long and hard Winter ahead.

In the Netherlands, businesses are once again operating with restricted opening hours, with bars, restaurants and supermarkets permitted to open until 8pm, while “non-essential” businesses are forced to close their doors at 6pm. Customers of these businesses are once again forced to wear a face covering and the scope of the country’s Covid Pass – proving that the holder has been vaccinated, tested negative or recovered from a previous infection has been expanded. Since the masks and passes have been introduced, case numbers have continued to rise, suggesting that tighter restrictions will almost certainly be on the way.

Meanwhile, Austria is leading the way on vaccine compulsion, introducing legislation effectively confining unvaccinated people to their homes, except for the very restrictive reasons permitted under previous lockdowns, unless and until they “voluntarily” accept the “offer” of a vaccine. Some German states are also tightening restrictions, permitting only vaccinated and recovered persons to engage in certain leisure activities and Denmark has reintroduced their Corona Pass, broadly in line with restrictions in other parts of the continent.

I cannot claim to know exactly how the dice will fall in Europe this Winter, but it is clear that those advocating tighter controls are beginning once again to prevail and those looking to enforce those controls are gearing up in earnest. Sorry to be pessimistic, but it is looking very much as if Europe is only heading in one direction this Winter. I, for one, have a feeling it is going to be quite some time before I see my home in Austria again and would urge any potential travellers to consider their options carefully.

How are the potential restrictions going to affect your plans this winter? Join in the Impact of Covid thread on our forum.