After a torrid Christmas, skiers are heaving a sigh of relief. The barriers facing travelling Brits have started to lift.
First, there was the removal of pre-departure testing for holidaymakers returning to the UK. Now France has lifted its ban on British tourists (provided they’re fully-vaccinated, and can present a negative result for a Covid test taken within 24 hours – as well signing the official French ‘sworn statement’).
Could this be the beginning of something like normality? Possibly: but with après-ski still banned in some countries and mask-wearing regulations widespread it really is only the beginning. And amidst the excitement it’s important to remember that there are still lots of regulations with which we have to comply. What’s more, several tripwires lurk along the way.
Sometimes these lie in the entry requirements. For example, at the time of writing, not only do adults need to be triple vaccinated to get into Austria (unless they can prove you’ve already had Covid); their booster must also have been given at least 120 days after their second dose of vaccine.
Other problems lurk in the Covid passports that restrict access to public spaces. From January 15, for example everyone who wants to activate their Passe Sanitaire in France by vaccination must be triple jabbed, if Jab Number 2 was more than seven months ago. (They can also activate it with a daily negative covid test, but that option is likely to be removed soon.)
Then there’s the problem of British 12-15 year olds. The NHS Covid Pass Letter offers the proof of double vaccination they’ll need to ski in several countries. But it’s not available to those who’ve had one dose of vaccine and have recovered from Covid.
To make sure you don’t get tripped up by such details, there are two key rules. The first is to check and recheck the entry regulations and Covid passport requirements for your chosen destination before you book – and then keep checking as your holiday approaches. The second is be up-to-date with your jabs, with the correct intervals between them.
For an overview, check out the online guide put together by tour operator Crystal. It covers the 10 destinations it offers in its ski programme.
Then, cross-check it with official websites. Start at gov.uk but remember it deals with entry requirements only (for both the UK and your destination), not Covid protocols once you’re abroad. So you need to check national websites too for information on whether vaccine passports control access to public spaces such as hotels, restaurants, bars and ski lifts.
Search online for the latest news stories too. Even apparently small tweaks can drive a coach and horses through your plans – as they did for the British skiers turned back from Innsbruck airport over Christmas.
France
Covid restrictions inside France
Austria
Covid restrictions inside Austria (with more details at welcome.tirol)
Italy
Covid restrictions inside Italy (only available in Italian: it’s best to work with the Crystal document instead)
Switzerland
Covid restrictions inside Switzerland (with exceptions for under 16s here)
Andorra
Official Andorra entry requirements
Covid restrictions inside Andorra
Spain
Covid restrictions inside Spain (NB these vary between regions)
Bulgaria
Crystal’s explanation of Covid restrictions inside Bulgaria
Finland
Covid restrictions inside Finland
USA
American entry requirements (see here for information on under-18s, in the FAQ section)
For Covid restrictions when you ski, check individual resort policies.
Canada
For Covid restrictions when you ski, check individual resort policies.
And finally…
Remember that even a booster jab is no guarantee against catching Omicron, even if it softens the blow. (I went down with it over Christmas only four weeks after my own booster.) So if you haven’t yet had the variant be cautious when you’re indoors. Keep your face mask on whenever you can and eat and drink outdoors if possible or in properly-ventilated rooms. You don’t want to waste any precious skiing in bed.
Contrary to the information given by Swiss Tourism, rapid antigen tests are not free to foreign visitors. They are however available in pharmacies and cost approx. CHF 35 for a kit of 5 tests.