Odds of Italy being open to US tourism this summer?

I guess the big question is why would you even want to bother right now?

Anyone with family or other ties there, I understand. However the rest of Americans should just take a couple years off from visiting.

They are fairly draconian right now and I doubt it would be that much fun.

A guy I work with from Romania is heading back over to see his family soon. He had COVID a few months back and still has anti-bodies. He will be forced to quarantine for 2 weeks when he arrives. Actual quarantine, can be arrested if caught outside quarantine. If he gets the vaccine, he still has to quarantine for maybe a week.

There is plenty to see in America

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Italy won't be vaccinated by then, so why bother.

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I have a friend outside of Rome I wanted to see, but I'm generally of the same mind of everyone else that posted that it's better to just schedule this trip next year.

There are other countries that will gladly accept you.

Just go there instead.

Probably a great year to go on safari in Tanzania.

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Probably a great year to go on safari in Tanzania.

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Looked into this but don't want to get stuck there if any covid craziness happens.

If I didn't have second kid coming I'd probably delay a bit but if I don't strike now it will be another year minimum.

Did South Africa in March 2018, Hawaii in December 2019.

Canceled Myanmar in Fall 2018 and Japan November 2020. I can't take any more delay.

I should have thrown Turkey as an option. Pretty good chance US citizens won't even have to test to go there this summer. Turkey didn't have a PCR test requirement until December. Plans to reevaluate on 4/15 to make exceptions for countries with good vaccination programs which would be us and the UK.

I'm scheduled to spend a day in Istanbul. Was there for a weekend over ten years ago.

There's a huge trip report for SA I did in the sticky. You'll have to click through the pics now.

Outbound flew AUS-Dulles (visit in-laws) - Addis Ababa - Cape Town. Did Cape Town and Franschoek.

Flew CPT - Hoedspruit and did Sabi Sands.

Then Nelspruit to Joburg to Dar Es salaam on SA airways, DAR-ZUR-JFK on Swiss and home on Delta.

Biz class for the international flights.

Turkish Air right now is the airline to go with in my view. They have a lot of routes operating and good availability. Be careful to book flight #s currently flying on the correct day of the week. They will certainly give you a seat on others that aren't flying now and then those will cancel but if you know that going in it can be figured out.

For example TK12 flies out of JFK each day. Other flight #s may show up out of JFK but aren't flying today so you can't assume they will two months from now.

Teddy Ruxpin got the 411. He'll hook you up with a trip somewhere!

I'd really like to go to Europe for Thanksgiving.

The problem I see is that once Europe opens its going to be like the florida beaches are right now, absolutely slammed with Americans that haven't been there in 2 years and waiting to get out of the country. Everything is going to be packed and busy.

If you can somehow time it right for that month or two that its open but not busy, that would be idea. When that is? I don't know.

I decent idea is to plan flights into somewhere like Munich or Switzerland and then if Italy is open go but if its not go elsewhere.

ETA: I also don't think its that big of a deal to visit somewhere that still has some shut downs like Italy if the locals are nice about it or you have a friend to visit and help you out. Its just like the states, I can promise not everyone is nuts about this. There's few places that are better to be limited then in the countryside in Italy. I wouldn't go to Rome or a big city, but a small town or city? Heck yeah I'd go and just enjoy what I can.