Just when you thought Omicron was on its way to plateauing and you could hit the friendly skies and board cruises to get back to traveling in the way you were excited to last year, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is saying, not so fast. They issue health notices and advisories (as does the U.S. Department of State) to help travelers navigate possible health threats around the world, and that includes how locations are being impacted by COVID-19. Not only did they encourage people to avoid cruise travel regardless of vaccination status at the start of the year, but also, their list of places to “avoid” travel to has increased recently. Over the weekend, the latest high-risk list added some popular islands in the Caribbean, which have been go-to destinations for people looking for adventure amid the pandemic.
The locations are Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, Grenada, Guyana, Saint Lucia, Sint Maarten, the Bahamas, and the Turks and Caicos. But as for the full list of the most recent additions, they include the following:
• Albania
• Argentina
• Australia
• Bahamas
• Bahrain
• Bermuda
• Bolivia
• British Virgin Islands
• Cape Verde
• Egypt
• Grenada
• Guyana
• Israel
• Panama
• Qatar
• Saint Kitts and Nevis
• Saint Lucia
• São Tomé and Príncipe
• Sint Maarten
• Suriname
• Turks and Caicos Islands
• Uruguay
Other Caribbean locales that were put on the high-risk travel list in the past include Trinidad and Tobago, the Cayman Islands, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, Haiti and more. Despite such advisories, as mentioned, some of these locations have been a favorite of people (including famous folks) recently. And the CDC says if you must travel to these places, make sure you are fully vaccinated before you go, wear a mask and socially distance six feet when you get there, and be aware that despite being vaccinated, you could still be at risk of infection and spreading the virus. But as cruise ships continue to set sail and people seek to travel to enjoy sun and sand, people seem to understand the risk and want some time to enjoy TLC, no matter what the recommendations are.