Javascript is not enabled.

Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again.

Skip to content

Scores of surprising features are hidden inside your smartphone. Find out what they are.

Content starts here
CLOSE ×
Search
Popular Searches

Games

Car rental

AARP daily Crossword Puzzle

Hotels with AARP discounts

Life Insurance

AARP Dental Insurance Plans

Travel

Suggested Links
Help Show me my account info Change my Address How do I contact AARP? Where is my membership card? How do I get a digital card?
Red Membership Card

AARP MEMBERSHIP

AARP Membership — $12 for your first year when you sign up for Automatic Renewal

Get instant access to members-only products, hundreds of discounts, a free second membership, and a subscription to AARP the Magazine. 

 

120x30-AARP-logo-red
Join
Renew
Enroll: Automatic Renewal
Rejoin

AARP en Español

Join
Renew
Enroll: Automatic Renewal
Rejoin
Leaving AARP.org Website

You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply.

Continue Cancel

State Department Changes Overseas Travel Advisory

Outbreak is controlled in many countries, but where are U.S. travelers welcome?

US passport with map
beemore/Getty Images
By

Christina Ianzito,

 
Published August 10, 2020

The U.S. Department of State has lifted its global advisory against all international travel, but the recent change doesn't mean American tourists will be roaming the world anytime soon. Many countries remain on the department's “do not travel” list because of the pandemic or other reasons having to do with crime or social unrest. And some nations that have their own outbreaks under control are banning Americans, as the coronavirus continues to spread in the U.S.

In fact, you'd be hard pressed to find a country that currently offers both safe travels, as determined by the State Department, and a welcoming, restriction-free policy toward American visitors.

There are about a dozen countries in the Caribbean, desperate for tourism dollars while cruise ships remain out of commission, that are now allowing U.S. visitors — but many that have seen their COVID-19 caseloads rise with the arrivals are requiring American travelers to provide negative COVID-19 tests and/or quarantine. “A lot of these countries’ GDP depends on tourism,” says Jan L. Jones, professor of hospitality and tourism at the University of New Haven in Connecticut. “But [COVID-19's] cost to their health system is just so high."

The State Department's recent change, made in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), reverts to its previous detailed, country-specific recommendation system, using numbered 1 through 4 advisories. Level 1 indicates that a country is relatively safe and tourists should “exercise normal precautions.” It now includes only Greenland, Macau and Taiwan.

The highest level, 4, means “do not travel.” The State Department website has a user-friendly color-coded world map, offering a startling look at how much of the globe remains at Level 4 — including nearly all of South America, Asia and the Middle East; many parts of Africa; and Mexico. In some cases the travel warning is due not only to high levels of COVID-19, but to terrorism, crime or other threats.

And much of the rest of the State Department map is colored orange for Level 3, the advisory that suggests Americans “reconsider travel.”

Regardless, many of those Level 3 countries — including the ones most popular with travelers from the U.S., such as Australia, Canada, Italy, France and others throughout Europe — still prohibit Americans from visiting or have serious restrictions on them once they arrive. Americans can visit Great Britain and Ireland, for example, but they need to self-isolate for two weeks upon arrival. In Ireland they need to fill out a COVID-19 Passenger Locator Form indicating where they will be quarantining, with high penalties for noncompliance.

Meanwhile, the CDC says staying home remains the best way to avoid getting sick because no form of travel is completely safe: “We don't know if one type of travel is safer than others; however, airports, bus stations, train stations and rest stops are all places travelers can be exposed to the virus in the air and on surfaces. These are also places where it can be hard to social distance [keep 6 feet apart from other people].”

Its recommendations for U.S. travel include wearing a mask in all public areas and, when possible, using remote check-in at hotels and contactless payment methods.

Christina Ianzito is a Washington, D.C.-based journalist who joined AARP in 2010. She’s the travel and books editor for aarp.org and AARP The Magazine and also edits and writes health, entertainment and other stories for aarp.org. She received a 2020 Lowell Thomas Award for travel writing.

More on travel

AARP Travel Center

Or Call: 1-800-675-4318

Enter a valid departing date

Enter a valid returning date

Age of children:

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

Enter a valid departing date

Age of children:

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

Enter a valid departing date

Age of children:

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

Flight 2

Enter a valid departing date

Flight 3

Enter a valid departing date

Flight 4

Enter a valid departing date

Flight 5

Enter a valid departing date

+ Add Another Flight

Enter a valid checking in date

Enter a valid checking out date

Occupants of Room 1:

Occupants of Room 2:

Occupants of Room 3:

Occupants of Room 4:

Occupants of Room 5:

Occupants of Room 6:

Occupants of Room 7:

Occupants of Room 8:

Enter a valid departing date

Enter a valid returning date

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 1:

There are children in room 1 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age for room 1

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 2:

There are children in room 2 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 2

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 3:

There are children in room 3 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 3

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 4:

There are children in room 4 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 4

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Occupants of Room 5:

There are children in room 5 without an adult

You didn't specify child's age in room 5

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Age of children:

You didn't specify child's age

Child under 2 must either sit in laps or in seats:

You have more than 6 people total

Please select a trip duration less than 28 days

There must be at least 1 traveler (age 12+) for each infant in a lap

Enter a valid start date

Please select a Pick Up Time from the list

Enter a valid drop off date

Please select Drop Off Time from the list

Select a valid to location

Select a month

Enter a valid from date

Enter a valid to date

Benefits Recommended For You

See All