A quick trip around the travel world. . .starting now:
Here’s a nice map from NBC News showing the travel status of every country in the world. There haven’t been a lot of changes in the last few weeks, but the US State Department caused quite a stir this week when they moved 115 countries to Do Not Travel status. This change syncs the State Department’s classifications with the CDC. We see this as an extremely cautious and conservative move. Having just returned from Aruba (which is now classified as Level 4-Do Not Travel), as fully vaccinated travelers, we felt very safe.
Back here in the US, Hawaii is easing their restrictions on inter-island travel, a move that makes sense for travelers looking to visit more than one of the Hawaiian islands. But the US and Canada extended their travel bans for tourists another 30 days as Canada struggles to get its vaccine program up to speed.
Perhaps the most positive news for international travelers is that Greece is now open to fully vaccinated and Covid-negative travelers a month ahead of schedule. Visitors will still be subject to Greece’s Covid-19 restrictions, including the closing of all bars and restaurants to in-house customers (takeout is available). In response, Emirates Airlines will restart their well-priced flights from JFK to Athens on June 1, and several other airlines are following suit.
Corfu, Greece. Photo by Jametlene Reskp on Unsplash
If you’re thinking about Greece as a destination, the island of Corfu is beautiful. It’s primary city, Corfu Town, is a double treat. . .there is a heavy Venetian influence, so much so that it’s included on this list of “Venice substitutes” worth visiting. Meanwhile, the real Venice appears to be serious about banning cruise ships from the lagoon. But in true Italian style, as cruising restarts in Europe, there apparently are some loopholes.
As you contemplate your next trip, here are some of the places that disappointed travel writers. It’s all what you make of it, and when you go; we found Venice enchanting (neither smelly nor very crowded, as long as you venture out from St. Mark’s). Daughter J would say that her visit to Machu Picchu was one of her best travel experiences.
CBS did a couple of great pieces recently. This report on the lemons of Italy’s Amalfi coast explained why we like their Limoncello so much. We also enjoyed catching up on how one of our favorite travel guides, Rick Steves, is coping with the pandemic and what he’s expecting in the next couple of years (hint: it’s an explosion of tourism).
Fans of Stanley Tucci and his sinewy forearms, rejoice! He’s coming back for a second season of Searching For Italy on CNN. We really enjoyed his culinary tour of the boot and look forward to season two. So does food writer Sara Porro, who files her wish list here, including some hilarious script suggestions.
When we travel, we like to use Viator to book some of our day (and night) tours. They announced a new agreement with Booking.com this week that offers their site’s visitors a seamless integration and the possibility of purchasing attraction tickets as well: https://www.breakingtravelnews.com/news/article/viator-signs-attractions-partnership-with-booking.com/
If you can’t wait to get to a pool this summer, here’s a top ten list of decadent spots in the USA for your lounging pleasure. Just make sure you check to see if the pool is open and not-too-restricted as part of your planning.
Just when we thought we had covered all the great credit card signup deals in last week’s post, Capital One turned the industry on its ear this week with a big expansion of travel partners to go with its 100k mile signup bonus. Our friends at Frequent Miler make the case that the Venture card could be the simplest one card fits all solution available, and we think it merits consideration, too. That is, if you haven’t already constructed a portfolio of cards to take advantage of sweet spots.
On the negative side, Southwest Airlines surprised its Rapid Rewards members with a devaluation of their point system. This is never a good thing for those of us playing The Game, but we predicted this a few posts ago; underscoring that we should use those points and miles sooner rather than later. It is exceedingly rare for any program to increase the value of its currency.
Lastly, if you think you (or I) have a lot of credit cards, consider this: Apparently, there is so much plastic in our oceans that seafood eaters ingest enough every week to produce one credit card. Ewww.
That’s a wrap for this week’s travel news highlights. If you have a question or comment, please post it in the comments section below. Enjoy the weekend!