European Union recommends easing of travel rules

LONDON, England (NBC) – The European Union took a big step Wednesday toward relaxing travel rules for Americans and other foreign tourists.

EU leaders will recommend that all 27 nations admit fully vaccinated visitors from outside the bloc. That’s good news for Americans hoping to make it back to Europe this summer.

The European Union is signaling that member states should consider relaxing restrictions for vaccinated travelers or those from epidemiologically safe countries.

European Commission Spokesperson Christian Wigand said, “The council will now recommend that member states ease some of the current restrictions, in particular for those vaccinated with an EU-authorized vaccine.”

This could apply to US travelers who have received both doses of the Pfizer or Moderna shot or a single shot of Johnson and Johnson.

Sharon Darmoni is an American visitor to Greece. She said, “We wanted to come when you just opened, before everybody comes.”

A number of EU countries are already open to vaccinated US travelers or those with a negative PCR test, including Greece and Croatia. The rest likely won’t be far behind.

The EU hasn’t given any firm timelines. But with summer travel season heating up, countries that rely on tourism are going to be eager to get travelers on seats in hotels and at dinner tables sooner rather than later.

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