We have booked a trip to Paris for 12/27 - 1/5. Now with the new strain we are seriously thinking of canceling but really hate to do it. Is it as dire as it looks?

I sure wouldn't go - rules can change at any moment. I'd cancel and plan a trip maybe in late Spring. (I was in the UK a couple of weeks ago -- had a great trip, but everything changed a 2 or 3 days after I returned and if my trip was tomorrow -- I'd have to cancel)

nah, i wouldn't go

If you can cancel, I would.

This is very much a personal choice, so I will only add my recent experience. We are just back from two months in Paris...we had three shots before going, two and a booster...we had a passe sanitaire after arrival and our time there was just great. The French were most careful about checking for the pass for entry to all cafes, bistros, museums, etc. so we felt relatively safe when going inside. People seemed very careful but they filled every chair, every seat.......most wore masks......hard to think what was going on with the pandemic in many cases...the French were able to enjoy their days regardless. The mood seemed cautious but we saw no panic......again, your decision if you are comfortable, but, we had a great time and would do it again tomorrow if we could..

If you have your triple vaccinations, there should not be a problem.

Not exactly. The protection from significant Omicron is only 75% with three Pfizer shots, and presumably also with Moderna. The latest calculations rate Omicron as transmissible as measles, which requires 30 foot (19 meter) distancing rather than the present 6 foot idea. The proportion of patients admitted to hospital that are vaccinated or previously recovered is increasing, although it seems that the duration of hospitalization is shorter.

So pandemic precautions, testing requirements, and travel restrictions will remain at best annoying and potentially disrupting as conditions and rules change unpredictably. The "Paris Dilemma" will follow any US traveler for the unforeseeable future.

I cancelled my trip to Paris for early Jan. I need to get back home for work. I want as close to a "normal" experience as possible when I return. I don't want to be sick away from home. I am triple vaxxed. There were too many "ifs" for my comfort level.

A thread I just read said that because transmission is so easy with Omicron that the doctor writing it said he would not sit inside a restaurant for the next month. Go somewhere warm instead and sit outside and enjoy till this variant passes or warm weather returns.

For me, if you have to ask the question, you already have the answer for you.

Personally, I’d probably cancel. But good friends of ours just returned after spending 10 days in Paris and had an absolutely wonderful time. They attended a PSG soccer match, did a day trip to Reims and the champagne area and also took the TGV to Marseille for an overnight trip.

Our friends had their passe sanitaire, which they said was checked everywhere, people wore masks and they felt much safer than they did in south Florida!

Very much like traviata’s experience…ŕ vous de décider…

I would not go personally and we were in France both in June and late September. I was boosted in September before our last trip. Risk of transmission is high as winter time in Europe is mostly an indoor experience. Especially risky if you are over 60 or have health issues. May also not want to have to quarantine if you test positive before your trip home.

One reason that I feel safer than most is that I had AstraZeneca + Moderna + Pfizer as my vaccinations.

Jean was right but I was hoping beyond hope that fellow travelers could change my mind. We did cancel and are planning to rebook the trip for April.

Our biggest concern was government restrictions changing. This is the 3rd European vacation we have canceled in the last 1.5 years. The latest was to Netherlands who imposed quarantine 2 days before our flight(then reversed it 2 weeks later). We went to the US southwest instead and were faced with canceled events, attractions, restaurant restrictions, etc.

Covid be damned! But thanks to you all and best wishes for a happy and healthy 2022 filled with wonderful travel experiences.

The situation a month or two ago isn't really the same as now or the new upcoming weeks given how fast Omicron spreads and how it is growing. Netherlands just locked down for example, so if someone had a great time on a trip 6 weeks ago, wouldn't matter.

With over 89% of the French population fully vaccinated and with everyone wearing masks, you are probably a lot safer from Covid in France than almost anywhere in the US. The expectation is that sometime around the first of the year, only the fully vaccinated will be allowed in cafés, restaurants, museums, and other locations where people gather.

I am concerned about traveling to the US.

Take care with these numbers as not all children are included in these numbers. From sortiraparis.com the figures are more like
This Tuesday 21 December 2021(consolidated data), 52,604,103 people have beengiven the first dose of the vaccine in France, namely 78.40% of the population. 51,522,919 people have been given the second dose of vaccine, namely 76.80% of the population.

The best source is https://www.data.gouv.fr/fr/datasets...la-covid-19-1/

And the numbers are less reassuring when breakthrough cases among the fully vaccinated are increasing. It's not likely you'd be hospitalized if you got Covid while in France, but you might have trouble getting back to the U.S.

My family has had 5 breakthrough cases in fully-vaccinated adults. The most recent was this week.

As for me, I would be concerned about traveling anywhere right now.

There are breakthrough omicron cases among fully vaccinated . . . everywhere. That doesn't concern me so much because almost all the data so far indicates the vast majority of cases are mild to very mild. Many catch and recover from the new strain w/o even knowing they have it unless they are tested. BUT it is still covid and one would test positive which would screw up the entire trip.

My son lives in NYC, and he is fully vaccinated. He received his booster on Monday 13th of December, and on the Thursday he caught Covid - the Omicron strain.
He has been sick - mild flu syptoms and it is passing.. However, his vaccination status meant nothing to Omicron.

Omicron is spreading throughout Europe, and there are a few countries in lockdown. I am not sure why people would want to travel so far, and risk catching it. I would be worried about getting home.