Experience of Travelers who tested positive for covid before their return US trip

Here’s a link to a thread from frequent poster, Bets, who tested positive in November right before returning to the US. Her situation was slightly different in that she and her husband are also part-time residents of France and have a home there.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/covid19/positive-test-flying-to-the-states-what-do-you-do-personal-experience

I’m not sure experiences in other countries will help you as each country has it’s own rules and procedures. Here are the Swiss rules on isolation and quarantine:

https://www.bag.admin.ch/bag/en/home/krankheiten/ausbrueche-epidemien-pandemien/aktuelle-ausbrueche-epidemien/novel-cov/isolation-und-quarantaene.html

If you do need to extend your stay due to a positive test, you would need to contact your airline about changing your tickets.

I just returned from a trip to Spain where a vaccinated and boosted traveling companion tested positive (with very mild symptoms) towards the end of the trip and had to delay his return. I was able to return as planned as I (also vaccinated and boosted) continued to test negative (and actually had a similarly very mild case of COVID in December in the US).

I agree with Carrie that this is country-dependent, but having just experienced this, I think the most useful way to think about this is -- what is your plan if you test positive? From my recent experience witnessing my friend re-plan the end of his trip, this required thinking about all of the following:

• What does the country that you are visiting require if someone tests positive?
• Are home antigen tests easily available/affordable (which is likely the case), so that other members of the traveling party can test frequently if there is a known exposure?
• Conversely, do you know how to get a "professional" COVID test in the country you are visiting? This may be necessary for things like making a claim on your travel insurance and importantly, your return to the US -- you may continue to test positive long after you are not contagious (especially on PCR tests, but even on antigen tests -- my breakthrough infection was very mild but I tested positive on antigen tests for 15 days) so you may have to go the "positive test + documentation of recovery" route, for which you need a non-home-administered test.
• Would you know how to get a documentation of recovery if you need to go that route? Many US doctors can do this via telehealth -- can yours?
• If you need to extend your lodging or find new lodging to accommodate an unexpected longer stay, can you do so where you are? If part of your plan involved taking public transport like a train, can you figure out another way?
• What about work? If you are employed, are you able to either work remotely or take time off on short notice?
• If you are transiting through a third country on your way back, will you continue to be able to meet the transit requirements?
• And, of course, can you pay for unexpected changes / have travel insurance to do so / have points to change things on short notice?

I want to emphasize this is not meant to sound alarmist but you need to think about how you would answer these questions. In Western Europe the answers are not likely to be difficult (in Spain for example, antigen tests are widely available and capped at €2.94 each; my friend was able to go same-day and get a positive PCR in Seville for travel insurance and documentation of recovery reasons; he had the telehealth number for his medical insurance and was able to get a documentation of recovery issued by his doctor; he had credit card points and was able to book a new return flight directly back to the US; and he had pre-emptively brought his work computer along so he didn't have to take an unexpected vacation).

But it's best to know what your answers might be.

Andrew, thanks very much for your informative post about the logistical matters which someone needs to consider in making decisions re European travel this year.

Andrew, thank you for breaking this down for us.

Aimee--We are packing today and I am already packing an extra 10 days of medications just in case. It might be overkill, but I would rather be prepared than get in a bind.

I would also point out that most airlines offer liberal change policies in the current climate, so a traveler who has to delay their return home likely won't be buying a brand new ticket. At the very least, you can probably maintain the value of your original ticket and apply that to the new fare. I know someone who got a substantial refund because her original return flight was on a weekend and her delayed return was in the middle of the week when airfare was cheaper.

Thanks everyone for your replies and helpful comments/suggestions