New testing requirements for most travellers coming into Canada will have a devastating effect on Canada’s tourism industry at a time when they’re just starting to recover from the pandemic, critics charge. “This is indeed another blow as the Canadian tourism sector was slowly seeing more action,” said Frederic Dimanche, director of the Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Ryerson University in Toronto. “This will of course lead to a significant decline in visitor arrivals. International visitors will not be willing to go through this.” The Trudeau government on Tuesday said anyone coming into Canada from a Read more
COVID testing
Will Canada bring in mandatory on-arrival testing for travellers? Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared to raise the possibility today in a brief scrum with reporters. Speaking prior to a Cabinet meeting in Ottawa, Trudeau said his government is watching the Omicron variant “very, very closely.” “We know that even though Canada has very strong border measures now — we need vaccinations to come to Canada, we need pre-departure tests, we need testing on arrival — there may be more we need to do and we’ll be looking at it very carefully,” Trudeau said. It wasn’t immediately clear if Trudeau was Read more
Today’s announcement that Canadians who take trips to the U.S. for less than 72 hours no longer need a COVID test to return home doesn’t help Canada’s battered tourism sector, critics say. The Canadian Travel and Tourism Roundtable said it acknowledges today’s announcement by the Canadian government removing the pre-departure PCR testing requirement (indeed, all testing requirements) for Canadians returning from the United States for trips less than 72 hours. The PCR test policy, however, remains in effect for Canadians who leave the country for more than 72 hours. Critics have noted that the tests are prohibitively expensive, sometimes more Read more
Fully vaccinated Canadians taking short trips out of the country will no longer be required to take COVID-19 tests before returning home, multiple sources report. Both the Toronto Star and the Globe and Mail report that the government will introduce a rule waiving the need for tests for anyone who’s outside of Canada less than 72 hours. PCR tests, also known as molecular tests, would still be required for trips longer than 72 hours. Those tests can cost $200 or more in the U.S. The CBC said the change likely will be made near the end of the month, just Read more
If you’re a Canadian with a mixed dose of vaccines, Ireland has some good news for you. The Irish government says it is now accepting mixed vaccinations as proof of inoculation. That’s a relief for millions of Canadians who received mixed vaccines, such as AstraZeneca followed by Moderna or Pfizer. Some countries were slow to accept mixed vaccinations, but the U.S. agreed to the policy a few weeks ago, and now Ireland’s official website makes the same point. To visit Ireland, you only need to fill out a Passenger Locator Form and show your vaccination proof. No PCR-style or even Read more
