HAVE PASSPORT WILL TRAVEL?

 …A MILLION LITTLE THINGS… 

Remember carefree travel?

The cavalier attitude to carefree jet-setting around the world is no longer a reality for your favorite dilettantes. Sadly, it hasn’t been carefree for a long while, what with security constraints and now all the COVID protocols and steps one needs to tick off just to be allowed to travel.

It used to be a passport was your ticket to anywhere else. I once showed up at the gate in JFK airport and bought a stand-by ticket and patiently waited until they called my name and soon, I was in Europe.

That doesn’t happen anymore.

ABIDE

TSA pre-check and Global Entry passes have made security compliance a bit more palatable, enough so that we don’t hardly ever complain about the $100 fee…good for five years. And, unless they come up with another COVID “sub-variant” to further scare the bejesus out of the world again (think Double Secret Probation from Animal House), we are getting to travel again.

Red tail lights heading for Spain

We are leaving for Spain soon and we just finally packed our bags. That’s because we have been too busy having to get our paperwork in order. Sadly, Spain was supposed to be easy, especially as we are fully vaccinated.

Where to start?

First off get vaccinated and get the booster shot. It makes your traveling a lot easier. I won’t even bother going if not vaccinated, and this isn’t a blog about your misgivings about getting a vaccination anyway.

Regular readers of this blog know that we praise the SHERPA APP and the VERIFLY APP.  With Sherpa you plug in your dates, destinations and vaccination status and Sherpa will tell you what your paperwork requirements are to enter that country. After cobbling together that information go to Verifly, plug in your countries and it lists what you need and you manually put it in. i.e.  your picture, your vaccination card, passport number and any forms necessary for this relaxing trip and puts into one convenient location.

Still, print out everything to have a hard copy, just in case your iPhone dies.

Here is the link to the invaluable Sherpa App and these are our instructions for Spain.

SHERPA FOR TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS

Verifly for Apple products:

VERIFLY APP

Sherpa instructions for our trip to Spain:

We are fully vaccinated, but there is a tab for non-vaccinated folks. As US citizens we do not require a visa.

1 - Mandatory – Proof of vaccination. Verify will have you take your picture and a picture of your vaccination card.

2- Recommended – A contract tracing app administered by the Spanish government.

3- Mandatory - A Health Control form administered by the Spanish government. This can only be completed within 48 hours of departure. You receive a QR code and that goes into Verifly, BUT, you must also print out a hard copy to present to agents in Spain. Do not forget to do this.

4- Mandatory – Masks in public areas. 

5- Mandatory – Health screening on arrival, including a temperature check.

For you Luddites out there (me)

Again, print out hard copies just in case and make sure you take along your vaccination card.

Also, we are flying Iberia Airlines from Madrid to Tenerife and the only way to get a boarding pass ahead of time is to (shudder) put it in your Apple wallet That is anathema to my psyche so I let Janet to it all...come to think of it Janet has done all the necessary paperwork.

I've spent all my time thinking about Sangria.

Remember, things are constantly evolving with this COVID, so be sure to use this blog entry only as a guide in how to proceed planning for your own travel

Thanks for reading.

Love Janet and greg

© 2022 by Gregory Dunaj 

HOT TIMES IN THE CANARY ISLANDS

CUMBRE VIEJA ERUPTION

We are going to travel to the Canary Islands in a few months. This Spanish archipelago off the coast of Africa has been in the news recently because of a 3-month eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano on the island of La Palma. 

The devastation of Cumbre Vieja

For 91 days Cumbre Vieja spat out lava and spewed ash into the air, destroying some 3,000 buildings, displacing 7,000 people, severing a major highway and forcing the suspension of flights to the airport. At its widest the lava flow was over 2-miles and reached the sea forming what’s called a lava delta, which means more land was created by the cooling lava. Thankfully no one was killed, but a lot of tourists had to be evacuated.

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

On Christmas Day 2021 officials declared the La Palma eruption had ended and in late March, roughly 90 days after that we will travel to the Canary Islands.  We are not going to La Palma though, but to Tenerife about 120 miles away. 

Mt Teide, Tenerife

Tenerife does have its own volcano, Mt. Teide, which last erupted in 1909, so with our luck we’re due for an eruption while there! 

Mt Teide rises to 12,188 feet in elevation, and it’s the highest point in all of Spain. If measured from the ocean floor Mt. Teide rises 24,600 feet and is the 4^th tallest volcano in the world. The volcano and the surrounding area are a popular tourist destination and Mt. Teide National Park sees millions of visitors yearly.

MT TEIDE NATIONAL PARK

I DON’T KNOW

To paraphrase the Jimmy Buffett song about volcanos, I don’t know / why we’re going to go!

So, If you’re thinking that volcano eruptions are rare, just look at last weekend’s eruption of the Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano in Tonga. If you think that’s a mouthful, look at this video of several views from space of the eruption. 

Space.com

Here's NOAA's look:

Right about now I’ll bet you’re saying “Greg, you is nuts!” But, I'll tell you it is scarier driving home on the Schuylkill Expressway after another Eagles loss.  Besides, the Canary Islands are an extremely popular tourist destination.

Even during the depths of the COVID pandemic last year millions of international tourists visited the Canaries and that doesn’t include the many Spaniards who travel here, lured by a subtropical climate, cheap flights and great vacation packages. Most of the visitors are from the UK, Germany and France, and now us Americans. If you want to go into a deep dive about the data go here:

CANARY ISLANDS STATS 

Canary Islands flag

GOING TO THE DOGS

There’s been enough excitement in this particular entry, so here’s some comparatively droll stuff.

The Canary Islands are just 62 miles west from the coast of Morocco and the bird is named after the island, not the other way around. There are several theories as to why they’re called Islas Canarias. One says it’s from Latin “Canariae Insulae” – Islands of the Dogs. Evidently Pliny the Elder, the historian and not the Double IPA beer from Russian River Brewing Company, said lots of large dogs lived on the islands.

RUSSIAN RIVER BREWING 

The Canary Islands are part of Macaronesia. Not to be confused with Micronesia, the multitude of islands in the South Pacific, Macaronesia, is NOT where the macaroon was invented, but a collection of four archipelagos off the coasts of Europe and Africa. They are the Azores and Madeira, part of Portugal, The Canaries, and an independent West African country, Cape Verde. The name Macaronesia is from Greek meaning “the Fortunate Islands.”

HOT TIMES IN TENEREIFE

At 785 square miles Tenerife is the largest of the Canaries, so there should be plenty of places to hide if Mt. Teide wants to join the recently erupting club.

Most of the tourists to the Canaries visit Tenerife. Before COVID the numbers reached 5 million yearly. As there are so many tourists, competition for the Euro is fierce. This is good! Low-cost drinks and vacation packages are always alluring to your favorite traveling duo. Typical of the Spanish way the revelry throbs deep into the night with bars and nightclubs not really gearing up until around midnight. The port town of Playa de las Americas is the party capital of Tenerife and there will be plenty of choices of watering holes for us to explore.

Thankfully though we are staying at the Santa Barbara Golf and Ocean Club by Diamond Resorts about 10 miles away. Our area may not convulse with a frenetic insistence like Playa de las Americas, but this is good because Janet can’t keep up and needs her rest. We do have to pace ourselves. Most of the naturist beaches are clustered in the South Coast area where we are staying! 

SANTA BARBARA GOLF AND OCEAN RESORT

We are staying in Tenerife for two weeks and plan to do all our exploring the first week and then relax when family flies in from England. We plan on taking an all-day bus tour of the island one day which will take us to Mt Teide National Park among other destinations. Another day we are going on a winery tour. And, we plan on renting a car for a few days to explore some nooks and crannies which may interest us once we arrive.  

This is going to be a great trip, as long as the place doesn’t erupt!

Thanks for reading

Love Janet and greg

© 2022 by Greg Dunaj

PLANNING AHEAD FOR TENERIFE - GRENADA – FIJI

LIVE LOVE TRAVEL?

We are emboldened! We’ve had more injections this past year between vaccines and flu shots and boosters that we could easily think we are indestructible or at least healthy enough to travel.

This pandemic has other plans.

With COVID variants popping up like dandelions on my spring lawn it’s no wonder countries are hesitant to allowing outside travelers across their borders. The logistics of traveling to foreign countries is already a chore without this pandemic, but with the constantly changing COVID protocols adding another layer of details it’s a wonder why we even want to leave the house!

Why?

Because it’s a big world and someone has to see it!

ISLAND HOPPING

Team VFH is ambitious this year and we’re currently planning a trip to a Diamond Resort on Tenerife in the Canary Islands with points gifted by Janet’s step-mother late March into April. We are traveling to another Sandals resort, this time in Grenada in May. And, we are looking for a sailing adventure in Fiji in September. We will be cashing in airline miles we’ve accrued over the years for a couple of free flights.

Yes, it is all very ambitious, but with a nod to all the COVID protocol issues we are paring down our destinations. Rather than taking side trips before reaching any of the destinations we are simply going straightaway to each island nation.

We may have to overnight in Madrid on our way to Tenerife to avoid missing a connecting flight, but at this writing we are (ahem…I mean Janet) trying to figure out how to avoid this.

TENERIFE

CAN YOU GET THERE FROM HERE?

Every country has its own set of COVID rules and it’s hard to keep up with them. Thankfully American Airlines runs something called Sherpa. Updated as changes are announced by governments, this great and free resource helps plan travel around the latest health and travel restrictions.

One could and should go to the individual country’s website for the latest information, but Sherpa lays it out clearly and details not only entry requirements but also return necessities.

Go to the website, plug in your travel information including dates and destination and Sherpa gives you a legible, easy to read guide to the necessary steps to comply with COVID protocol rules currently in place, including any necessary tests or quarantining requirements. Sherpa also gives information for fully vaccinated and unvaccinated travel.

SHERPA WEBSITE

Here is what we’re looking at so far:

Canary Islands

Fully vaccinated travelers from the United States have no need to quarantine or take a COVID test to gain entry, but upon landing will have a health screening consisting of a temperature check and visual check for symptoms. Masks are required in all public areas.

GRENADA FLAG

Grenada

Fully vaccinated travelers from the United States who do not have a travel history visiting certain African countries listed on the website are allowed entry. Another reason to avoid side trips. Upon arrival a COVID test may have to be taken if authorities in Grenada think it’s necessary.

Fiji

This distant island nation in the South Pacific just recently reopened their borders in December and they have the strictest rules. First off you must be fully vaccinated just to gain entry and then spend 3 nights at a certified CFC (Care Fiji Committed) hotel and take a Rapid Test on day 2. If negative then we could travel on our sailing adventure. This isn’t a quarantine in a hotel room, but a “Safe Travel Area” where CFC-approved tours, excursions and experiences are available during this stay. We experienced something similar to this when we traveled to Jamaica last year.

Fiji also requires travel insurance that covers COVID related issues and masks in all public areas.

NOTHING TO SNEEZE AT

Of course, as we get closer to departure dates restrictions may ease somewhat.

The situation(s) remain fluid though and the new normal of having to deal with this pandemic will never fully leave us. So, check Sherpa and the individual country’s website to keep up to date with these necessities, and we'll keep jumping through hoops in order to see this vast beautiful world.

Thanks for reading

Love Janet and greg

© 2022 by Greg Dunaj