Stu,
Take a deep breath. Remember before the internet and microplanning how travel used to be so much more about rolling with the punches and being flexible. We are old hands at that and and travel during Covid is turning back the clock. We want things to be "perfect" and predictable. However, unpredictability is the price we pay for traveling now. That's the trade-off.

My wife and I are headed to Paris (transiting through Germany), London and the QM2 in April. Covid could throw us a curve ball anywhere along the way. After three jabs and looking at the vaccination rates, we choose to be optimistic. We have decided to enjoy travel once more however it plays out.

We are hoping to take our family to Kenya with a stop in Europe before and afterwards next summer and it is likely our last opportunity to do so. We are planning cautiously and have "cancel for any reason" insurance. Most hotel reservations can be made in advance as many can be cancelled a week or so prior to arrival (make sure to reserve only refundable reservations.) I would go ahead and plan but be aware you may need to change plans as the time gets closer. It is hard to know which countries might be the most impacted so I would tend not to follow the advice to just make plans for one county but hope for the best. This will be one trip where we will stay connected with the news while traveling and likely checking in frequently with the US Consulate websites.

France will do nothing unless hospitals become saturated with patients and that is not happening. ICU rates are currently 29% of capacity. If this reaches 90%, I would then become concerned.

If you are referencing your US return, the US government requires an antigen test be taken within the 3 calendar days preceding your departure. If there really is some unforeseen event, and you exceed the 3-day period, you simply get another test. They can be obtained at CDG.

The pass sanitaire remains valid until December 15th at which time all individuals qualified to obtain the 3rd dose must do so. Presently, those qualified is defined as those who are 6 months from their 2nd dose and who are 65 or older. As a tourist, I would not worry about this change before there is an amendment to who qualifies to enter the county and that remains those fully vaccinated with no mention of the 3rd dose. If you already have the 3rd dose, take your paperwork to an approved pharmacy, there are 2000 in France, and have them issue a 3rd dose OR code which you can scan into your TousAnitCovid app.

""If there really is some unforeseen event, and you exceed the 3-day period, you simply get another test. They can be obtained at CDG.""

When our 9:30am flight was cancelled in 2018, we didn't find out it was cancelled until we were all on the airplane. Then we got off, retrieved our bags, received our new tickets, obtained reservations from United for our hotel in town, and then United bused us to the hotel. It was around 3-5PM when we finally got into our room. Then they served dinner to us. Next morning we departed at 6:00am from our hotel to CDG to check in for our 9:30 am flight. Not much of a window to get a Covid test.

But thanks for all the good advice about my other concerns.

Stu Dudley

Since travel conditions have changed enormously since 2018, I think that any airline would take possible testing needs into consideration in case of rescheduling.

Kerouac

It is my understanding that a negative Covid test is a US requirement - not an airline requirement. Correct me if I'm wrong!!

Perhaps United could set up a "testing room" at the hotel where the waiting passengers are staying. But I do not think they will!!

Stu Dudley

Stu, I was thinking that given that airlines are the de facto enforcers/paperwork checkers, that they would work with airport testing centers to deal with a planeful needing updated results.

That said, when we traveled (SFO-MXP and NAP-SFO) last month, we used the eMed/Binax/Abbott tests with video proctor -- twenty minutes for results, uploaded onto our phones.

An airline making a direct flight to the United States would want to fill up the plane. There are various ways to ensure this in 2021.

I would go, but I say this as someone who is taking a family of six to London, Berlin, and Amsterdam on 12/19. Long story short but we had airline tickets to Mexico about 1.5 years ago and decided not to go due to the uncertainty of covid travel. We were pretty much forced to rebook our tickets or lose our money so we chose a Europe vacation instead and here we are! All I can do is hope and pray every day that it will go on without a problem. My entire family is double vaccinated and I have my booster shot ( I work in a hospital).

Best of luck to you!!

""family of six to London, Berlin, and Amsterdam on 12/19""

Better hope that The Netherlands does not extend their present curfew, and Germany does not impose one.

Next week we are leaving for 2 weeks in Paris. We received a huge e-mail from Air France today which tried to explain what is "needed" to get in & out of France. I spent about 1 hour reading & following all the links, and my wife sent 2 hrs doing the same. The explanations were sometimes poorly written and sometimes in conflict with itself. We both came to the conclusion that the only stuff that we didn't know about was some paperwork we needed to fill out for the return trip. About 4 hours later I was grazing through it again and discovered that we missed some additional information/paperwork we didn't know about to get IN to France. Neither of the 2 new documents were anything serious - and I'm sure that AF would supply us with them if we showed up "without" them. Somewhere along the way, I believe I read that there was some new "rule/paperwork" that started on Nov 20 (last week). AF also advised us that we should arrive at the airport 4 hours before departure so that AF can process everyone.

Stu Dudley

Go!

My last flight into Paris from the US was just a couple of weeks ago. I simply needed my proof of vaccination and to fill out a locator form which was distributed on the aircraft. I had prepared the Engagement sur l´Honneur form for those entering France from an orange/amber country but no one asked for it. Oddly, I was asked at immigration for my proof of vaccination after the official reviewed my passport but overall, the process was very simple and no different from what it has been for some time.

Air carriers pay big fines if they transport an unqualified passenger into an airport with passport control. Air carriers are very diligent about making sure passengers have proper passports, any required visas, and all necessary paperwork.

The Netherlands is closing down pretty much everything so museums, bars, restaurants, non food shops, markets, cinemas have to close at 5pm from Sunday. Masks required everywhere. US Covid passes are still not accepted and can't be put on the Dutch Covid Check app which is also required for entry to restaurants bars and so on when they are open. Some hotels are offering in room dining, but not all.
The early closing lasts initially for 3 weeks, so till 18th December, but unless things change here dramatically over the next two weeks (which seems unlikely) I can see it being extended and possibly becoming a complete lockdown then, if not earlier.
Given the omicron variant already being in Belgium I am worried things are going to get a lot worse.
Expect more restrictions in Germany too.

Will "dinner" restaurants even bother to open it they have to close at 5PM??

Stu Dudley

During the lockdowns in France, a huge number of restaurants converted their operations to delivery service. Don't the Netherlands do the same thing?

When you are traveling with more than two people, the ramifications of being forced to quarantine overseas or not get home get significantly more complicated and expensive. My husband and I have non refundable (but super cheap) plane tix and refundable hotel reservations for 2 weeks in Portugal and Spain for ourselves and two young adult sons, leaving 12/18/21. We are all fully vaccinated, with boosters.

If we were required to stay, we’d have to pay considerably more in hotel and food costs. Sure, we could rent an Airbnb but that’s not free either. Not to mention two college aged sons who are trapped with their parents, with school looming. And having had COVID twice myself, the ramifications of people living with you stinks: I had to quarantine for 10 days; they had to quarantine for 14 days.

This was intended to be a potentially last big family trip for just our nuclear family with both sons graduating from college soon. One of them is in Navy ROTC so who knows when he’ll next be available to travel after he’s commissioned. The thought of having major attractions closed, limited restaurant hours, and requirements for both a negative test and a vaccination card makes me wonder if it’s worth it.

I watch the news compulsively and as soon we hear that things are starting or look close to shutting down in Portugal and Spain, we’re pulling the plug. At this moment, I’m not feeling optimistic about this trip.

We may stay home playing fado on the stereo, eating lots of cod, and watching Portuguese films. It could be worse!

I would certainly wait now that Omikron is on the move.

Certainly we do. But where's the fun in that, if you travel to a foreign city, to eat takeout in your hotel room?

You'll have do takeout or order delivery. I do believe that in a hotel you can make use of the hotel restaurant, but likely they'll do room service.

I think we already have it, witness what was going on with that SA flight at Schiphol last night. Schiphol and GGD created a super spreader event.