The US passport has lost its strength significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic and Americans are left with few options on where to travel.ShutterLibrary/Shutterstock; Samantha Lee/Business Insider
- While many countries are not allowing US travelers during the coronavirus crisis, some nations are open to Americans.
- The United Kingdom, Caribbean countries, and select international locales are allowing tourists from the US.
- Many countries require you to show a negative COVID-19 test and airline schedules are severely reduced, limiting options on how to get to the newly-opened destinations.
The world is re-opening, and Americans have more travel options for travel destinations than they've had since March.
The problem is that the American passport has significantly lost its power since the coronavirus pandemic outbreak.
Rising cases of the virus and the US government's ongoing travel restrictions barring entry for non-citizens into the country have turned the world against hosting American visitors, despite the economic benefit they bring. As a result, US passport holders can visit just a fraction of the world's countries, and are largely bound to North America for travel.
Central American and Caribbean countries were the most receptive to Americans over the summer, while most of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South America, Asia, and Oceania remain closed off. Every continent has a handful of countries willing to accept US visitors, but most require mandatory quarantine upon arrival, or a negative COVID-19 test for entry.
Another problem: getting to some of the countries that are letting in Americans isn't as easy as hopping on the first flight. Even those who can show a recent negative COVID-19 test must deal with the fact that airlines have greatly scaled back their schedules, with some countries not allowing US citizens to transfer through their airports at all.
Travelers seeking to journey to these countries should opt for non-stop flights to minimize potential disruptions. If connecting through a third country is required, Americans should check with their airline and the local US embassy to ensure they'll be granted passage.
Here's where Americans can travel in the age of coronavirus and how to get there.