COVID-19 Travel Guidelines
Please reach out to our Traveler Support team at 1-800-754-5066 if you have any questions either now or in the future about your ability to comply with any COVID-19 travel requirement.
COVID-19 Vaccination and Pre-Tour Testing
Neither vaccination against COVID-19 nor pre-tour COVID-19 testing is required to participate on an EF Go Ahead Tours program unless required by any destination on your itinerary or by a tour-related supplier or activity provider.
For a traveler’s health and safety and to help avoid an interruption of their tour experience, EF Go Ahead Tours does, however, highly recommend that travelers be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (including being up to date on all eligible booster doses) and take a COVID-19 test prior to departure.
EF Go Ahead Tours will take all reasonable efforts to notify travelers and their groups in the event any COVID-19 vaccination or testing requirement becomes applicable to their tour program. Travelers are, however, ultimately responsible for verifying, monitoring, and complying with any such requirement based on their tour itinerary (including countries visited solely in transit).
Please note that international travel requirements pertaining to COVID-19 vaccinations and testing requirements, including destination entry and supplier requirements and local isolation and quarantine guidelines, can be implemented and changed at any time and with little or no notice.
Some destinations require that travelers either show proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative, lab-based COVID-19 test taken shortly before arrival. Please note that due to the group travel model of educational tour programs, EF Go Ahead Tours cannot facilitate on tour testing for unvaccinated travelers in order to meet any COVID-19 travel requirement, including entry requirements applicable to countries on a multi-country itinerary visited subsequent to the commencement of the tour program. The group travel model also makes it impracticable for travelers to independently schedule COVID-19 testing while on tour. As a result, travelers will need to fulfill the strictest destination’s vaccination requirements, if vaccination is required on their tour program, prior to their departure from the United States. Travelers may only present documentation of required testing in lieu of vaccination if they are able to satisfy these requirements, inclusive of the required timeframe of the test, prior to their departure on the tour program.
Travelers unable or unwilling to satisfy any COVID-19 vaccination and/or testing requirement applicable to their tour program will be subject to EF Go Ahead Tours' Standard Cancellation Policy.
Pre-Departure COVID-19 Positive Test Result
If a traveler tests positive for COVID-19 within 10 days prior to their tour departure, they may not be able to travel unless they can satisfy the current guidelines from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (the “CDC”). The CDC currently requires an individual who tests positive for COVID-19 to isolate for at least 5 days and to end isolation only:
(i) after day 5 if the individual never developed any symptoms;
(ii) after day 5 if symptoms are improving (i.e., fever-free for at least 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication); or
(iii) after day 10 if the individual had symptoms and moderate illness.
Regardless of when isolation ends, the CDC guidance currently states that individuals should wear a high-quality mask through day 10 unless the individual receives two sequential negative antigen tests 48 hours a part. Please contact our Traveler Support team at 1-800-754-5066 to discuss any specific questions related to your situation.
Pre-Departure COVID-19 Exposure
Travelers who are a “close contact” of a person diagnosed with COVID-19 within 10 days of their departure date must comply with the applicable CDC testing and masking guidelines prior to departing on tour and, if applicable, while on tour. Please contact our Traveler Support team at 1-800-754-5066 to discuss any specific questions related to your situation.
On-Tour Mask Wearing, Testing, or Other COVID-19 Health Requirements
Although not a requirement for all tour programs, EF Go Ahead Tours strongly recommends that travelers wear a high-quality face mask in crowded indoor spaces or other areas of potentially high transmission. Travelers must also comply with any applicable country, local, supplier, or other activity or venue requirements and any instructions of their Tour Director or EF Go Ahead Tours staff while on the tour program related to mask wearing, testing, or other COVID-19 requirements. Travelers who refuse to comply with such requirements or instructions while on tour may be removed from the tour and sent home at their own expense.
In the event that a destination, supplier, venue, or activity provider requires a negative COVID-19 test regardless of vaccination status within a timeframe that necessitates the administration of the test while on tour, EF Go Ahead Tours will assist in arranging testing for the entire travel group with travelers responsible for any costs of the required testing.
On-Tour COVID-19 Diagnosis or Close Contact
Travelers must inform their Tour Director if they develop COVID-19 related symptoms on tour and may not rejoin the tour group until permission is granted by their Tour Director or EF Go Ahead Tours staff.
Travelers who test positive for COVID-19 while on tour must isolate in accordance with local regulations or CDC guidelines (in the absence of destination requirements) and may not rejoin the tour program until these requirements are met. Some destinations may also require travelers to quarantine if they have been in “close contact” with a person who tested positive for COVID-19 while on tour and those quarantine requirements may vary based on vaccination status.
EF will support travelers who test positive for COVID-19 while on tour by facilitating their isolation in accordance with local regulations or CDC guidelines (in the absence of destination requirements). This includes arranging lodging at the destination and, whenever possible, pre-paid room service. If pre-paid room service is not possible, travelers may reimburse up to $50 per day per traveler for food delivery. In addition, EF will reimburse up to $50 per person for transportation from the traveler’s hotel to the international airport once they are cleared to return home and will arrange and pay for their return flight based on the traveler’s existing itinerary.
Travelers may also request a pro-rated Future Travel Voucher for the land components of any missed days of tour due to any isolation required.