Holiday

By Euronews Travel

Most countries have travel restrictions in place in a bid to control the spread of COVID-19.

The latest big changes include:

• Full lockdown has been reinforced in Austria, meaning a complete ban on entry for tourists.

• There has been a spike in cases in Germany, The Netherlands and Belgium leading to increased restrictions.

• Some Christmas market have been cancelled in Germany.

• Czech Republic has dropped its self-isolation rules for all travellers, but proof of vaccination is needed to enter restaurants.

• All countries have been taken off the UK’s red list, though the quarantine category remains in place if needed, and antigen tests are now accepted for day 2 testing.

• Moldova has extended its state of emergency until at least the end of the month, with private events still banned. Read more on euronews.com/travel

By DAVID KOENIG

DALLAS (AP) — Determined to reclaim Thanksgiving traditions that were put on pause last year by the pandemic, millions of Americans will be loading up their cars or piling onto planes to gather again with friends and family.

The number of air travelers this week is expected to approach or even exceed pre-pandemic levels, and auto club AAA predicts that 48.3 million people will travel at least 50 miles from home over the holiday period, an increase of nearly 4 million over last year despite sharply higher gasoline prices.

Many feel emboldened by the fact that nearly 200 million Americans are now fully vaccinated. But it also means brushing aside concerns about a resurgent virus at a time when the U.S. is now averaging nearly 100,000 new infections a day and hospitals in Michigan, Minnesota, Colorado and Arizona are seeing alarming increases in patients.

The seven-day daily average of new reported cases up nearly 30% in the last two weeks through Tuesday, according to figures from Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says unvaccinated people should not travel, although it is unclear whether that recommendation is having any effect.

Read more: Apnews.com/article