Muriel Saldalamacchia
For more than 10 years in the destination wedding business, travelling the world for weddings, Muriel is France based, but has also rocked in Italy few years ago.
Asides her travels with her clients, Muriel is also an International Speaker, dealing with her peers onto the Luxury and destination Wedding Market.
Muriel is alos a French author, and will see her book.s translated in English and Italian in 2020.
You might feel dizzy with all infos you could find here or there while finding the good country where to get married soon.
We have good news for you!
Short list of countries re-opening after COVID-19
Updated on June, 3rd, 2020
Looking for a curated and selected list of countries that officially announced when they reopen their borders after COVID-19 pandemic ?
Whatever you’re expecting your destination wedding to happen still, or you plan to choose a glamorous destination location for your 2021 wedding, we want to help you in your quest.
We selected some of the most popular destinations we know can have your interest.
This article will be updated as much as needed, and we put all our focus on verified and genuine governmental informations. To make sure you have last updates, please refer to each country’s official website, mentioned in each section of this post.
FRANCE
France got out of lockdown on May 11th. Gradually getting back to the new normal, the government decided to follow 3 different phases to gradually get back to the new normal.
So far, wedding celebrations are now legally authorized, both civil and religious.
There is no clear statement as of today in terms of numbers of guests. Public gatherings are limited to 10 people, but as a wedding is a private event, the Conseil Constitutionnel banned any laws prohibiting private / families events.
Then, French citizens are allowed to travel within Europe from June 15th. And Europeans travellers are welcomed in France, without any quarantine from June 15th too.
International situation: The French President Emmanuel Macron is working with European leaders to decide with a common rule to synchronize the international flights reopening.Knowing that some countries already scheduled their international reopenings on July 1st.
All combined, it looks very positive for the situation and having your wedding celebration in France, from mid of summer this year. And if you’re planning a 2021 wedding, you’ll be able to come to the country to prepare, scout venues, taste caterers…
Below, official informations to follow all updates: https://uk.france.fr/en/holiday-prep/information-coronavirus-france
GEORGIA
Georgia, that I visited few months ago has many to offer and maybe you envisage a very unique wedding experience. This stunning country and its warm and welcoming fellows will be allowed to welcome you from July 1st. Georgia is one the first european countries to officially announce the reopening of its borders to the world.
Access to the official letter I received from the Legal Entity of Public Law GEORGIAN NATIONAL TOURISM ADMINISTRATION:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/1hsg2dhnso3hhp3/georgia%20private%20sector.pdf?dl=0
GREECE
International flights are reopening July 1st, and no quarantine for any travellers! Sounds like Greece will recover with destination weddings sooner than any other countries in Europe.
Greece’s tourism minister Harry Theoharis announced his wish to welcome tourists by July 2020 in Greece.
It’s all about step-by-step with successive phases. As an example, year-long hotels will be able to reopen June 1st, and touristy / coast hotels will reopen from July 1st. Also, “Greece’s borders remain closed to non-EU countries until at least June 15. The 14-day quarantine will continue to be imposed on any new arrival to the country, as will the ban on all cruise ships, yachts, and sailboats docking at Greece’s ports.” wrote Sarah Buder for Afar.com
To conclude: a lot to follow but all positive and safe efforts are done to recover and open at the soonest in Greece.
ITALY
Italy had been the first most significant country to be devastated by COVID-19.
For so many reasons, the Italian government is very secure in his decision to ensure a full recovery at the soonest.
June 3rd, Italian borders are reopening to European and UK citizens, without quarantine.
Bear in mind that as the country has counties, you can have some local restrictions, going opposite to the Government recommandations. Just ask me if you have any doubt will have the right informations as I do cover with local peers the whole country.
Lindsey Matthews at AFAR.COM mentioned clearly : “before you start celebrating, these new regulations don’t apply to residents of the United States. According to the government decree, these new rules only apply to people arriving from member countries of the European Union, countries within the Schengen Zone, as well as the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, and the microstates and principalities of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino, and the Vatican”.
Then, to follow the Italian Government news, just follow this link: http://www.governo.it/it/faq-fasedue
MONACO
This is all what we love with Monaco. This principauté, splendid and secluded area, is convoited by many of you.
Soon, the Principauté will entering the Phase 3 of unlockdown.
Gatherings are allowed for a maximum of 5 persons, and the Prinicpauté placed security and sanity on their priority. Please pay attention to the 10 strict rules they created, as social distancing (1,5m), wearing masks,
From there all infos are gathered here.
https://covid19.mc/en/mesures-de-deconfinement/
And if you’re looking for updates with reopening international flights, Mrs Cassandra Tanti wrote an excellent post here: https://monacolife.net/flights-set-to-resume-to-nine-eu-cities/
SWITZERLAND
Being lucky enough to have peers and connection globally, Guendalina Rampazzi is one of those who iis reliable, and really well informed. We met during international conferences and we’re very involved in verified informations.
May 27th, the Swiss government informed about the next phase of the exit from the lockdown and we are expecting that bigger events will be allowed as of 8th June. It is not sure yet, how many people and what are the conditions for that.
So you can find all updated informations on the official website of the Swiss health department in English and in French.
In the menu on the left side, you can find additional links about the rules in Switzerland.
Guendalina Rampazzi is available at MySwitzerland.com/weddings
SPAIN
Spain also had been severely hit by the virus. The country is in State of Emergency until June 6th, but enter the unlock phase while opening Barcelona and Madrid to commuting for its citizens.
“Travel between regions is still forbidden and foreigners arriving in Spain must quarantine for 14 days.” says journalists at Reuters / France24
But Spanish government indicated the tourism activity while welcoming international guests will be operating this summer, July ideally.
You can also refer to the Official Spanish Travel Ministry to follow updated informations if you plan to travel to Spain.
UAE
For you who plan to go and visit UAE in the next weeks / months : https://u.ae/en/information-and-services/justice-safety-and-the-law/handling-the-covid-19-outbreak
For US Citizens: https://ae.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/covid-19-information/
UK
After some good news from the prime minister cabinet, now “UK government confirmed that, as of June 8, anyone arriving in the UK will have to self-isolate for 14 days, regardless of symptoms. Travellers will submit the address that they will be staying at on arrival at UK airports and ports. Police will then be given powers to spot-check homes and issue £1,000 fines for anyone not observing the rules”. Telegraph.co.uk
In order to make good and advised choices, you can reliably refer to the official UK website for everything about travels.
IATA TRAVEL CENTER
You can also jump on the IATA live informations for everything about travels here:
https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/international-travel-document-news/1580226297.htm
We love the way it is clear and global.
LIVE BOARDERS MAP
You can also refer to this live boarders map that will show you countries per countries which one is opened / it depends / closed: https://travel-map.org/?lang=en
