CDC Continues to Lower COVID-19 Travel Warnings for Caribbean Islands

Alison Fox
·2 min read

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lowered its travel warning for several popular Caribbean islands this week, but continues to warn Americans against popular countries in Europe.

The agency reclassified Saint Kitts and Nevis and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines under "Level 1," its lowest travel warning, indicating that there is a "low" level of COVID-19 there. Destinations are classified as a "Level 1" if there are fewer than 50 new reported cases per 100,000 people in the past 28 days.

In addition to the islands, the agency classified Bangladesh, Myanmar, Haiti, Saudi Arabia, and the Philippines under "Level 1."

The CDC recommends travelers ensure they "are vaccinated and up to date" with their COVID-19 vaccines before traveling to any destination, and warns that, "Even if you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, you may still be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19."

The Caribbean, St. Kitts and Nevis: aerial view of The Narrows ( 'The Straits') channel between the islands of Nevis (foreground) and St. Christopher
The Caribbean, St. Kitts and Nevis: aerial view of The Narrows ( 'The Straits') channel between the islands of Nevis (foreground) and St. Christopher

Hedelin F/Andia/Getty Images

While there was good news for some countries, others remained at the agency's highest warning level, including some of the most popular vacation destinations in Europe such as Italy, France, and Greece. As of Tuesday, the CDC continues to classify 89 destinations as "Level 4," indicating a "very high" level of COVID-19 transmission and telling Americans to "avoid" traveling there.

Destinations are classified as "Level 4" if there are more than 500 COVID-19 cases reported per 100,000 people over the last 28 days.

However, many of the countries that are deemed a high warning have welcomed Americans, with some even dropping COVID-19-related travel restrictions altogether like the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Iceland. Others have eliminated pre-arrival testing for vaccinated visitors like the Netherlands and France.

For its part, the United States continues to require international travelers, including U.S. citizens, to get tested for COVID-19 within one day of flying to the country, a policy the White House has said there are "no plans to change."

Alison Fox is a contributing writer for Travel + Leisure. When she's not in New York City, she likes to spend her time at the beach or exploring new destinations and hopes to visit every country in the world. Follow her adventures on Instagram.