Don’t panic. Stay calm and, before you start feeling too exhausted or ill from the virus, take some precautions to keep those around you safe.

Editor’s Note: Globally, rules and guidelines around Covid are changing frequently. Be sure to check the CDC, World Health Organization (WHO), and local guidelines for your destination for the most up-to-date information on Covid.

1. Isolate

If you’re traveling with loved ones, you’ll need to separate from them immediately to minimize their risk of infection. That means calling in to the front desk to explain your situation, ask for an additional room for yourself, and ensuring that house cleaning, room service, and other services are declined for your room during the isolation.

Staying in a hostel? Make sure to notify other travels you’ve shared spaces with and the hotel staff immediately, and move to a solo room, ideally with a private bathroom, as soon as possible. Keep a well-fitted N95 or KN95 mask on as you gather your belongings from the shared room.

Depending on your location, a positive test may mean you are required to report to the government and isolate in a specific facility. The country may even subsidize your stay in a mandated “health hotel” while you recover. Make sure to check the rules of your destination before you even board your plane, and have that information easy to access during your trip in case you do get sick.

2. Don’t Head for Home

When you’re sick, all you really want to do is curl up in your own bed, maybe with a bowl of hot soup, and relax until you are well again. But when you’re abroad and positive with Covid, you can’t just slap on a mask and hop on a plane to go home. Not only could your symptoms worsen from the time you test positive to the time you get to the boarding gate, but you will put many, many others at risk by trying to travel back home.

You’ll need to avoid traveling for at least 5 days, even if you don’t have symptoms. Ideally, you should stay put for about 10 days, per CDC recommendations. But keep in mind that other countries may have different guidelines or mandates you need to follow. You may need to quarantine for 14 days before you can continue your adventures or head back home.

3. Check Local Guidelines

Check with World Health Organization (WHO) for general advice, and review local guidelines for your destination. Here are some Covid guidelines for various countries in Europe:

• Belgium
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Italy
• Netherlands
• Spain
• UK

4. Cancel Plans and Ask for Refunds

Unfortunately, that positive test means you’ll be missing out on that castle tour or museum visit. But thankfully many businesses and vendors are very understanding, especially when it comes to Covid. 

Call to reschedule or cancel your plans and ask for refunds when possible, and check any travel insurance policies you purchased that may cover losses due to Covid (some destinations even require travelers to purchase a Covid travel insurance policy before visiting). This will come in handy if you need to pay for an extra room and/or extra nights at your hotel for isolating.

5. Make a Plan for Food

If you get Covid while traveling, you’ll need to isolate, meaning your dinner reservations and afternoon park picnics are a no-go.

Maybe the hotel will offer no-contact delivery to bring room service meals to your door, or you can send a traveling companion to get you some groceries to get through the next several days. 

If you are on your own, you may need to use a food delivery service online to bring you food through no-contact deliveries. Aside from individual restaurants that may offer delivery, there are also popular delivery apps throughout Europe. Top delivery apps in Europe include UberEats, Glovo, Deliveroo and JustEat.

6. Go to an Urgent Care if Necessary

If you’re feeling especially rough, seek medical care at an urgent care or, for severe cases, an emergency room. Before your trip, you should get copies of your medical records either on your phone or printed in case you do need medical attention (this is something smart to do, Covid or not, in case of any illnesses or accidents!).

Whether you have symptoms or not, when you get that positive test, you may also want to call your health insurance company and/or your doctor for advice on what to do in addition to checking with local regulations pertaining to Covid.

Travel Prepared for Covid

Unfortunately, Covid doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon. That doesn’t mean you have to cancel your grand European adventure, but it does mean you should take some necessary precautions to minimize your risk of getting sick and know what to do if you catch Covid while traveling.

Wear your mask, test often, make a plan in the event you have a positive test result and make a point to keep those around you as safe and healthy as possible.

The post What to Do If You Get Covid While Traveling appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

I spent most of August 2021 traveling in France with my family, and have collected a few tips to share with other American travelers about how to prepare for an upcoming trip to France and what to expect once you arrive.

11 Tips for Traveling in France during Covid

Note: Most of these tips (such as those about the Pass Sanitaire) apply to everyone in France. Other tips, such as those regarding quarantining, are specific to a visitor’s country of origin. Be sure to check with your country’s embassy in France for specific advice before departure.

1. Get fully vaccinated before arriving in France, or face a quarantine.

The rules are always changing, but as of September 12, 2021, fully vaccinated American travelers, ages 12 and up, may enter France without restrictions. As long as you’re two weeks out from your second shot (or four weeks from your Johnson & Johnson single shot), you may enter. Bring along your CDC vaccination card for proof.

If you are not fully vaccinated, you will need to present a negative COVID-19 test result (either a rapid Antigen test taken within 48 hours of your flight or a PCR test taken 72 hours before your flight). Note that you will be given a second test in France at the airport upon arrival.

However, unvaccinated travelers will also need to self-isolate for seven days upon arrival and will need to undergo another test following this quarantine. (Read all requirements here.)

In short: Get vaccinated.

2. Children may enter France freely with their vaccinated parents.

Children under 12 are not subjected to these rules, as they are not yet able to be vaccinated in the US. Thus, they may enter the country with their vaccinated parents.

As for older children, according to the US Embassy in Paris, “travelers ages 11 through 17 are treated as vaccinated if they are accompanied by a fully vaccinated parent or guardian.” However, “travelers in this age group traveling independently must meet the rules applicable to adult travelers.”

3. Fill out a health declaration before departure from the US.

Travelers will also need to bring along a signed declaration (or “attestation”) stating that they are healthy, free of COVID-19 symptoms, and haven’t recently had contact with a confirmed case of COVID-19.

You can download this form on the French Diplomacy website.

4. Bring along extra masks for the flight.

Imagine this: You’ll put on a mask as soon as you enter your departure airport in the US. And then you’ll basically keep it on, with small breaks for eating and drinking during the flight, until you step out of the airport in France. It’s a long-haul, folks.

For this reason, I recommend bringing along a few extra masks. On my flight, Air France distributed “health kits” to all passengers, which included hand sanitizer, a mask, and hand wipes. But it would be a good idea to have some extra masks on hand, in order to freshen things up a bit as the voyage drags on.

And yes, you’ll keep your mask on throughout the entire flight, except when eating and drinking. This includes when sleeping — or trying to sleep. Young children are not required to wear a mask, although we made sure that our four-year-old kept his on.

A blue-vested controller scans a passenger’s Pass Sanitaire prior to boarding trains in the Gare de Lyon. (Photo: Tom Meyers)

5. Here’s how to get a “Pass Sanitaire” as an American tourist. You’ll need it for… everything.

The “Pass Sanitaire” (health pass) is a French-issued document that proves one of the following:

• You’re fully vaccinated with an approved vaccine (Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca/Covidshield, R-Pharm, Fiocruz or Johnson & Johnson/Jannsen)
• You’ve just had a negative COVID test (less than 72 hours)
• You’ve recovered from COVID-19, and can show a positive test result dated at least 15 days prior (but no more than six months)

According to the French government:

From early August [2021], you will also need to present a pass in bars, restaurants, malls, hospitals (except if you are admitted for urgent care), retirement homes, residential care homes, and for long-distance travel by plane, train or coach. For campsites, and other holiday accommodation you will need to present a pass once, on arrival.

In other words, you’ll need to show your pass in order to take the TGV, eat in restaurants and cafes, visit the Louvre, and take a trip to the top of the Eiffel Tower, and more.

I was in France when the health pass went into effect in early August 2021. There were grumblings and, of course, some protests, but the positive effects were noticeable immediately. Vaccinations immediately increased, and over several weeks, confirmed cases plummeted.

The pass had a positive impact on my trip, as well. Knowing that everyone had a health pass on them made me breathe more easily on the TGV. It made me more comfortable in the elevator going to the top of the Arc de Triomphe. It even made me more comfortable using the bathroom at McDonald’s!

But how do you get a Pass Sanitaire if you’re American, Canadian or other nationality?

The French government has streamlined the process for obtaining a health pass through their FranceConnect system. You simply create an account and then upload proof of vaccination (in most cases, a scanned image of your CDC vaccination card). Once verified, you will then receive a digital Pass Sanitaire.

Will my CDC-issued vaccination card work as a Pass Sanitaire in France?

No. The French Pass Sanitaire contains a special QR code that will be scanned in order to take transportation, enter restaurants and museums, etc. Even if your CDC card contains a QR code, your vaccination wasn’t registered in the French system. Thus, Americans must apply to the French government (see above), providing proof of vaccination, in order to get a Pass Sanitaire.

How do I get a health pass if I’m already in France and need one now?

Head to a pharmacy and get tested. Your negative test result will serve as a temporary Pass Sanitaire valid for 72 hours. In some cases, you may also be able to have a pharmacist manually add you to the French system, upon presentation of your CDC card.

Do children need a Pass Sanitaire?

Children under the age of 12 do not need a Pass Sanitaire. Teenagers, ages 12-17 will need a Pass Sanitaire as of September 30, 2021.

6. Download the #TousAntiCovid app to store your Pass Sanitaire

So you’ve gotten your Pass Sanitaire — now what? Although you can print it out and carry it around with you, we strongly recommend downloading the official #TousAntiCovid app, which will store the certificate for you and make presenting it easier.

How does the Pass Sanitaire work?

Once the app has stored the digital certificate on your phone, you will simply take out your phone and open the app whenever asked to present your Pass. In two taps, your Pass opens up. It’s simply a QR code with your name under it. Whoever is asking to see the Pass (a waiter, a security guard, a flight attendant, etc.) will then scan your code and a green light will flash on their scanner to indicate that your Pass is valid and that you may enter.

I think you’ll quickly find that opening your #TousAntiCovid app and showing off your Pass Sanitaire is not a hassle at all. A whole table at a restaurant can be scanned in about 30 seconds or a minute. And in fact, it offers quite a bit of peace of mind afterward. It might make lines a little slower to snake into the Louvre as you wait to be scanned, but once inside it allows you to relax a bit. Look around — everyone has a health pass.

A sign in an outdoor cafe in Sète, France announces you’re entering a “Pass Sanitaire” controlled zone. Get ready to show it! (Photo: Tom Meyers)

7. Embrace outdoor cafe culture.

Fortunately, France’s outdoor cafe culture makes it easy to enjoy coffee, drinks and meals outside in the fresh air. Note that presenting your Pass Sanitaire is still required by law for anyone being served at an outdoor cafe or restaurant.

However, whether or not your waiter asks to scan your Pass Sanitaire is another question. During my trip, I’d say that adherence to the law ran about 50% early on, although the local authorities started undercover crackdowns on cafes that were not abiding by the law and I definitely witnessed an uptick.

In short: Be ready to show your health pass for all dining, indoor and outdoor.

8. Carry a mask with you.

Of course, even with your Pass Sanitaire, you’ll still need to wear a mask when riding on public transit (where you don’t need to show a Pass), and when inside most public buildings and shops.

I noticed that while some Parisians still wore masks outside walking around on the streets, most were not masking up. However, everyone had one ready to put on once they stepped inside a store or descended into the Metro.

Testing tents are everywhere, including along the Champs-Élysées. (Photo: Tom Meyers)

8. Get tested before your return flight to the United States.

So far we’ve discussed French laws and regulations. However, those flying from France back to the United States must also get tested for COVID-19 and prepare some paperwork before returning.

According to the American Embassy in Paris:

All airline passengers to the United States ages two years and older must provide a negative COVID-19 viral or antigen test taken within three calendar days of travel. Alternatively, travelers to the U.S. may provide documentation from a licensed health care provider of having recovered from COVID-19 in the 90 days preceding travel.

Where can Americans get COVID-19 tests in France?

Fortunately, getting tested in France is simple, fast, and cheap. Many pharmacies perform the tests, which costs 25€ for a rapid Antigen test and 43,89€ for a PCR test.

The process is simple: You walk into the pharmacy, fill out some information (including your email) and pay, then step aside to get tested. Most pharmacies in Paris offer testing in tents outside on the sidewalk. (In some neighborhoods, it feels like there’s a testing tent on every other block!) You’ll also find testing tents near popular attractions, like the Eiffel Tower and along the Champs-Élysées (photo, above).

In my case, I received my results by email less than 15 minutes after getting my nose swabbed on the sidewalk.

Can I get tested at the airport?

Yes — there’s a pharmacy at CDG Terminal 2E that offers rapid antigen tests in the check-in area. However, note that you’ll need to complete the test before heading through security. I noticed a line of very anxious passengers waiting to get tested before passing through border patrol (which was also moving very slowly). Save yourself the stress — get tested a day or two before departure!

What do you do with your test results?

The email that you receive with your test results will include instructions for uploading the results to your #TousAntiCovid app, although you could also show the email or print it out. That’s it. You may then show your results at the airport before flying home.

In my case, nobody asked to see these results until we arrived at the gate for boarding. There, a flight attendant was checking test results for each passenger before allowing them onto the plane.

9. Fill out the US health declaration for each passenger.

Every passenger over the age of 2 years old must hold a completed Passenger Disclosure and Attestation to the United States of America in order to board a flight to the US.

In my case, I had forgotten to fill this out, but was able to fill it out at the gate before boarding. I’d recommend filling this out in advance to avoid a little last-minute stress!

10. Relax. It’s not really that complicated.

I know. This all sounds like a lot of planning and anxiety. And yes, it certainly requires more planning than, say, staying home and not traveling. But once you check these items off your list, you’ll be free to travel again!

And if you ask me, it’s worth it. Once you’re on your way, and you realize that everyone around you has cleared the same hurdles, you’ll relax. And then suddenly, once the realization hits that you’re actually traveling to France again, you’ll be ready to reclaim some of the joys of traveling that have been missing for so long.

11. Check these resources for up-to-date travel information.

This situation is fluid and requirements and rules are subject to change. Be sure to stay up to date by visiting the following resources:

US Embassy in France: Covid-19 information

CDC: Information and Advice for International Travel

Air France: TravelDoc Search (helpful document search even if you’re not taking Air France)

#TousAntiCovid App information

Pass Sanitaire / Health Pass application for non-French citizens (in English)

The post Traveling in France During Covid: How to Get a Pass Sanitaire, Testing, and More appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

The New York Times reported last night that fully vaccinated American tourists will be permitted to travel to all 27 European Union member countries this summer, according to an interview conducted with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen.

Related: Tips for traveling to France during Covid-19

No official timeline has been announced, but one could be coming soon — especially as “summer” officially begins in less than two months. According to the news report, it seems likely an announcement will take place once a vaccination certificate becomes available that is acceptable to both E.U. and American authorities.

According to the article:

“These discussions are continuing, officials in Brussels said, and it is possible that a low-tech solution would be used in the near future to enable people to travel freely on the basis of vaccination. For example, a traveler to Europe could get an E.U. vaccine-certificate equivalent on arrival after showing a bona fide certificate issued by his or her own government. The hope, officials said, is that this step would soon be unnecessary as government-issued vaccine certificates issued by foreign governments would be acceptable and readable in the European Union, and vice versa.”

Read the full article

So what does this mean?

A number of questions remain, all of which we’ll be following with keen interest:

• When will this new policy go into effect? Unknown.
• What about unvaccinated travelers who can show a recent negative COVID test result? The statement from the EU doesn’t address them, and seems unlikely to include them.
• What about children under 16, who are unable to get the vaccine? As children under 16 years old are also not given any of these vaccines in Europe, it seems unlikely that unvaccinated American children would also be excluded, but again, this has not been clarified.
• Will this policy be reciprocated? Will vaccinated European travelers be permitted to travel to the US? Unknown — we’re waiting to hear from US officials on this.

What can you do to get ready?

Get vaccinated: And obviously, if you want to have the chance to go to Europe this summer, get your shots!

Passports: Check your passport’s expiration date. If it has been sitting in that drawer for 13 months, you are going to want to make sure you are ready to go when the world opens up and your feel ready to travel.

Book those flights: We’ve already booked tickets to France for August, because airfare was low and the tickets fully changeable. We’d recommend booking flights before they get any more expensive. However, make sure that they’re able to be changed without penalty.

The post European Union to allow vaccinated American travelers this summer appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Do I have a direct line to researchers developing a COVID-19 vaccine? Nope. Do I know something you don’t know about what the outgoing or incoming U.S. federal administration is going to do with regards to vaccine distribution? Nuh-uh. Do I have a crystal ball? (It had to be asked.) No, I do not (we wish!).

Am I nevertheless going to plan my return to Europe for 2021? Yes, I am.

Here are 11 tips I think will make planning your return trip to Europe in 2021 easier, safer, and less expensive than you’ve been imagining it could be.

Related: 11 Tips for Traveling to France in 2021 (Pass Sanitaire, Covid Testing, ete.)

Tips for a safe and Cheapo trip to Europe in 2021

1. Go with a friend

When we get sick or are injured at home, we all need someone who will advocate for us with health care providers when we can’t advocate for ourselves. While we Cheapos do love a great solo adventure, during these times of COVID-19 I’m opting to travel with a buddy. Then, if I get sick or injured, my buddy will be able to make sure I receive the treatment I require and vice versa.

This was already a good point to consider pre-COVID-19, but now planning for the worst is the only sensible way to travel.

Visiting Athen’s Acropolis helps the local economy — and is an open-air attraction. Photo: dariosusanj

2. Plan to visit places that rely on tourism

This has been a crazy hard year for most of us. But for nations whose economies rely primarily on tourism, this year has been especially difficult.

That’s why I’m heading to Greece. Not only has the nation suffered a TKO to its tourism industry, its primary source of income for the great majority of Greeks, but Greece has also provided asylum for more refugees per capita than most other EU nations.

And besides, after the year we’ve had here in the U.S., heading to paradise for my first trip outside the U.S. since the pandemic began seems like a pretty good idea.

3. Go during the off-season… for several reasons

Is there even still an off-season, with so many employees telecommuting and the majority of students studying remotely now? Yes, there most certainly is.

Even if students are attending class virtually, the majority of families who have taken any holidays in 2020 have done so during school breaks. That means the off-season is still when most schools are in session, so avoid planning travel for Thanksgiving week, the winter holidays, or June through August.

Why does off-season travel matter in the first place? That’s when the fewest people will be traveling, so you are less likely to find yourself seated beside a center-seat companion on airplanes, less likely to sit back-to-back with other guests at outdoor restaurants and cafes, less likely to have neighbors in the hotel room across from yours, and so on. Fewer fellow travelers almost always translates into cheaper room rates and flights, too.

Having fewer people to jostle around has always been a treat during the off-season, but during these COVID-19 times having more space to move and sit and eat is more than a bonus. It’s now a health consideration, too.

4. Buy trip insurance for peace of mind

You most likely won’t need to purchase travel insurance to protect you from expenses associated with rescheduling or altogether canceling your flights, because many airlines are including that in their airfares these days (of course, if the ticket you buy doesn’t include it, we always recommend purchasing it).

But medical evacuation and repatriation insurance are a must. Should you become ill or injured overseas, you may need to be evacuated in order to receive proper medical care–especially if you’re hiking or otherwise exploring more remote areas. Repatriation insurance covers the cost of flying your body back home, should you die while traveling abroad.

Of course, we hope you will waste your money on this and never have any need for it, but having it in your pocket is a necessity… just in case of the very worst-case scenario actually happening to you during your trip.

For more information on this topic, read our post on travel insurance.

JFK to Madrid in June… for under $500 nonstop? You could book it now and cancel if need be.

5. Book your airfare now for deals

We have no idea (though some speculate) how airfares will be impacted by COVID-19 or anything else over the course of 2021. We do, however, know how airfares are looking right now, and they’re cheap.

Really cheap.

We found round-trip September airfares from SFO to ATH with only one layover for as low as $687, and round-trip airfares as low as $603 for flights with two layovers. That’s less than we paid to fly to Greece in 2004.

6. Book a window seat to reduce risk

Studies have shown that the greatest risk of contracting COVID-19 during a flight is derived from the people sitting two seats ahead of you, two seats behind you, and two seats to either side of you. So, if you select a window seat, you’ve just reduced your risk by 25% simply because there are no seats to one side of you. According to this article from MIT Medical:

… Whatever your airline’s middle-seat policy may be, when it comes to the risk of contracting an illness in flight, a window seat may be your safest bet. Having a wall on one side automatically reduces your number of close-proximity contacts. A window seat also protects you from the inadvertent close contacts that can occur when other passengers are hoisting bags into overhead bins at the start of a flight or crowding aisles to deplane after landing.

7. Book your accommodations now for deals

As with flights, there is no sure-fire way to know what will happen to hotel room rates in 2021. But many hotels are offering deals to encourage travelers to book now so they can have a sense of how many guests they might expect to serve, so they can entice travelers to take advantage of the lower rates, and quite frankly so they can determine if they can even keep their doors open.

Nevertheless, most of these hotels are still offering complete refunds if you cancel within forty-eight hours of your arrival date, so you win if you go and you win if you don’t. Check the full details before you book.

Search for hotels in Europe on EuroCheapo.

Where will you go when it’s safe to ravel again? Photo: Unsplash

8. Pack these items for extra safety

• A roll or two of toilet paper
• Hand sanitizer
• Disinfectant wipes
• Disposable protective masks
• Cloth face coverings
• Disposable safety gloves
• Ballpoint pens

If you’re in the habit of getting off the beaten path quite often, you have probably long been in the habit of packing your own toilet paper and hand sanitizer. Continue to do that, even if you’re planning to stay primarily in urban areas when you return to Europe. Then, pack disinfectant wipes so you can wipe down high-traffic areas in your hotel rooms and at outdoor cafes, along with a supply of disposable masks that’s double the length of time you plan to be away.

So, if your trip will be for 14 days, pack 28 disposable masks. Here at home you use cloth face coverings and wash them after each use to limit your environmental footprint. Continue that practice by taking a few cloth face coverings with you when you travel, but in case you take one of your cloth face coverings off at a cafe to eat and then one falls onto the ground while you’re affixing it to your sweaty face before entering a shop, you want to have a back-up. (You definitely do not want to get stuck having to stay outside of a place you really want to enter and may not have a chance to return to simply because your mask fell on the ground or you left it behind and now you have no face covering to protect others and yourself.)

Though there’s not much use for disposable gloves if you are able to wash your hands, you may find yourself somewhere where you won’t be able to count on washing your hands before eating. What if you lose your hand sanitizer or it falls out of your bag and there is no sink available to wash your hands? That’s when the disposable gloves will come in handy. Just make sure you are smart about how you remove them.

Finally, bring at least three ballpoint pens with you so you always have your own to sign hotel guest registries and credit card receipts.

9. Take these precautions everywhere you go

Washing your hands often, wearing a protective face covering, and staying 6+ feet away from others isn’t just good advice for when you are around others back home; it’s good advice everywhere. Though you may be enchanted by your surroundings, always remember to keep your mouth and nose covered and keep a safe distance from others as you explore Europe.

And if you feel unwell while overseas, stay in your hotel and avoid potentially exposing others to your illness. If you test positive for COVID-19 while abroad, isolate yourself from others for 10 days, plus three more if your symptoms have not resolved themselves within seven days of starting your 10-day isolation period.

It will be a bummer to have to stay in your hotel room watching local television shows and reading the 99 books you brought with you on your e-reader, but that’s what must be done in order to be a good global citizen during these times of COVID-19.

Driving through Spain. Photo: kentwang

10. Stay safe while renting a car, and riding a train or ferry

Rent a car. Rent a car. Rent a car. (Seriously, rent a car.) Wear your mask when you initially enter it and for the first few hours of driving it, wipe it down with your disinfectant wipes, and drive with the windows down for the first few hours.

Just as you would here at home, wear your protective face covering when you fill your rental car’s tank with petrol, and apply hand sanitizer to your hands before removing your mask or putting your hands on your steering wheel once you’re back in your vehicle.

If you’re going to take the train (who doesn’t love the trains in Europe?), splurge on a couchette/sleeper car. You can wipe it down with your disinfectant wipes, wear a mask for the first few hours you are in it, and if the window opens you can open it up to get air circulating while keeping the door to the couchette closed so as to restrict air flow from the main cabin.

If you’re traveling to a country like Greece where you would typically use ferries to move from one island to another, consider staying on the mainland and solely using your rental car for transport, or fly among islands instead of taking ferries. Even if you can find sufficient space on a ferry to keep yourself and others safe, simply standing in the crowd waiting to board the ferry could be unnecessarily risky.

Search car rentals throughout Europe here.

11. Embrace the outdoors

If you don’t absolutely have to go inside shops, museums, and exhibits, skip them altogether this time around. Instead, enjoy the outdoor offerings of the place you’re visiting. For instance, although the Benaki Museum and Acropolis Museum are brilliant, during my 2021 return to Athens I will focus solely on visiting Lykavittos; the Parthenon; Hephaestus; other archaeological finds and architectural remains that can be enjoyed in open spaces; beaches; mountainous regions where we can hike to our hearts’ content; and the abundance of outdoor markets, cafes, and gardens.

Final thoughts

There’s no reason to fear returning to Europe (assuming those of us with U.S. passports are admitted…!) in 2021. Simply be smart about it and take every reasonable safety precaution, just as you would right here at home. Safe and joyous travels to you!

Your tips?

Planning a trip abroad in 2021? How do you plan to stay safe?

The post 11 Tips for Planning Your Return Trip to Europe in 2021 appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.