The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has disclosed that Spain, France, Italy, and Poland are some of the safest EU countries to travel to since they have been registering low infection rates for several weeks now.
In line with the most recent weekly-gathered data published by ECDC, it has been shown that the majority regions of the countries mentioned above have identified less than 50 Coronavirus infection cases per 100,000 inhabitants and have had a test positivity rate of less than four per cent during the last two weeks.
As a result, all of the following regions listed below are currently coloured green:
Regions of Italy: Apulia, Molise, Abruzzo, Umbria, Sardinia, Piedmont, Liguria, Lombardy, Friuli-Venezia Giulia;
Regions of France: Bretagne, Normandie, Hauts-de-France, Grand Est, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Centre-Val de Loire, Nouvelle-Aquitaine;
Regions of Spain: Galicia, Asturias, Castille and Leon, Extremadura, Andalusia, La Rioja, Navarre, Murcia, Valencia;
Regions of Poland: Pomerania, Kuyavia-Pomerania, Greater Poland, Lubusz, Lower Silesia, Opole Silesia, Lesser Poland, Subcarpathi, Holy Cross Province, Lodz.
This means that travellers are no longer discouraged from travelling to or from the countries, especially areas, mentioned above as the chance of being infected is relatively low, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.
This is good news for everyone, especially for those who plan to travel during the fall and winter breaks since it means that they will not be required to follow any entry rules once they return back to their country as long as these areas remain on the safe list.
Moreover, every traveller who proves that they have been fully vaccinated against the virus or recovered from it can travel to these countries without having to follow testing and self-isolation rules. Nonetheless, in special cases, they might still be required to meet other requirements, such as completing an entry form.
For this reason, in order to avoid any misinformation and inconvenience, everyone is advised to check the entry rules of their destination country before their trip.
One of the main reasons why most areas of Spain, France, Italy, and Poland have been placed on the green list is due to the countries having successful vaccination campaigns. Additionally, the requirement to hold a COVID-19 health pass when attending different places has had an essential role in improving the epidemiologic situation.
Currently, Italy’s Green Pass, which is an extension of the EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate, is mandatory for all persons, including tourists, who want to be permitted entry to bars, cafes, restaurants, theatres, museums, sports events, amusement parks, conferences, and meetings, among others. Apart from that, the pass is also mandatory for all those who want to attend any of the transport modes.
Similarly, all those who plan to travel to France must hold a valid EU Digital COVID-19 Certificate or another equivalent that proves that they have been vaccinated, recovered, or have tested negative during the last 48 hours since the country requires everyone to hold a health pass in order to be permitted access to most places and services.
