If you tested positive, did any of you test negative before the 10 days?

First of all, where are you?. That will make a difference.

Some people convert sooner than others. It won’t be as simple as just testing negative depending on where you are and your airline.

Carol thanks for all the help you give others on this forum. I am at Heathrow, eventually flying on Delta.

When i tested positive in New Zealand - I was told to not retest for at least a month - preferably 90 days. I was allowed out of quarantine after 7 days as I had no symptoms then.

Thanks Lissie.

I have a friend who tested Negative the day after her positive test on an antigen test. However, looking back she thinks she may have been sick a few days before the positive and not realized it. (she has allergies and her symptoms were exactly the same as her normal allergies so... YMMV)

Purely anecdotally, I know someone who did a rapid antigen test every day after the first positive and tested negative on day 8 (flew home on day 9). His time in isolation abroad was much more stressful waiting for that negative test then for our mutual friend who just waited out the ten days, got the recovery letter, and flew home on day 11.

Delta may be your biggest hurdle. All the reports I have read on the forum that mention Delta state they are pretty much sticklers for 10 days. You may have a different experience.

I’m glad you are in the UK. At least you don’t have any country specific quarantine rules other than reduce contacts and mask up.

I hope that this situation resolves itself soon and that you are not feeling too sick.

My wife and I tested positive on Day 6 of a RS VIT tour. We got stuck in the Rome covid hotel, it's very rundown and is not free contrary to what appears occasionally on the internet (160 euro/night for a couple), and you cannot leave the room. They test you approx every 2 days, I tested negative on day 6 and my wife on day 9. We were flying United and they absolutely wouldn't let us fly before day 11 after the positive test (the date of the positive test was considered day 0). We checked other airlines and received the same information. The covid hotel was full of Americans who had mostly tested positive before returning to the US, most of the ones we talked to were off cruises.

Carol in ATL, that is my situation. I was sure it was a cold(I got colds in Florence and NYC in 2019 and figured it was a plane illness). The only difference for me is that an old-fashioned cold doesn't have a test you have to take. However, I am focusing on being thankful that it was "just a cold"-so many people have had life-changing experiences instead of just a major inconvenience and expense.

Cala, so sorry this has happened to you! Glad to hear it has not hit you as hard as it has some other people.
If you will be staying in your hotel room and not going out much over the next several days, at least you will be able to see the Queen's Jubilee events on TV.

Carol, you wrote:
"I’m glad you are in the UK. At least you don’t have any country specific quarantine rules other than reduce contacts and mask up."

Does this mean she can go out, as long as she maintains distance between herself and others? (and wears a mask or course)

@ Rebecca. Yes. There are no specific requirements in the UK other than to limit contacts and mask up. She would be free to go for walks outdoors or a quick trip to the grocery store.

Thank you, Carol. Good to know.

My husband and I tested positive in Portugal. I was positive until Day 13, and my husband was 14 days. We could not upload our documents, we flew Air Canada, we had to go to the counter with everything. And they called the manager over. We got out of Portugal with a letter of recovery from our US doctor. We had to quarantine, but we just stayed at the hotel we were at when we tested positive. Luckily, I had a very mild case and my husband seemed like his allergies were acting up. Never had a fever. We flew from Lisbon to LAX. We were so happy to be home!

Cala, we are in same situation. Tested positive (I did) Saturday, did self isolation, no symptoms, can't find answers from any of the pharmacy's here (Italy) other than the pharmacy's don't do letter of recovery. When Hubby tested positive with no symptoms a few days after me we continued our self isolation and now test daily. I've heard the self tests can show some Covid for a long time. We got here 5/20, were supposed to leave 6/2 and not stuck until ....not sure. If our self tests continue to show faint line under the T then I'll have to figure out a way to get letter of recovery next week. My feeling at this time is the only way to do so is to call our doctor in the states.

@Kaymenmichelle
I responded to your question on the thread you posted. Lots of information available on the forum.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/covid19/getting-documentation-of-recovery-if-you-test-positive-while-overseas

My friend stuck in Portugal had a pharmacy negative test result on day 7.

kaymenmichelle, I hope your doctor in the states can help you. But be warned, my US doctor won't even do telemedicine when I'm in another state-but how would she know I'm in another state if I didn't tell her?

EDITED: I didn't think I'd be able to get a recovery letter from her, but still wonder how she would know that I'm not in Birmingham if I were trying to do a routine telemedicine appt while in Chas.

@cala won’t it be obvious when you ask for a letter a recovery? You don’t need them in the US. Your doctor will figure it out.

We are flying Delta, it says on their web site — 5 days from positive test or symptoms.

We are flying Delta, it says on their web site — 5 days from positive test or symptoms. But you have to have a negative test or recovery from Doctor.

It is extremely confusing and even more so when you are in the situation. Delta’s site says 5 days in one place 10 days in another. And in another that you must abide by CDC’s requirements which links you to:
CDC site for International re-entry to US….
“You tested positive for COVID-19.
Do not travel until a full 10 days after your symptoms started or the date your positive test was taken if you had no symptoms.”

But I guess the reality of it all happens the day you have a positive test. This happened to us in Italy. My husband’s flight home was cancelled, he isolated in a hotel room for 7 full days (as required by Italian government) tested negative on the 8th day so he was able to go outside. He called his primary physician in Oregon and she sent him a Letter of Recovery that cleared him to travel 11 days (day of positive test is 0) after positive test. After 11 days he was then able to rebook his ticket and fly home. United was the airline and their agent was very clear about the CDC requirement of 10 days, no travel. His primary was very clear about what the CDC required of her as far as to when she could release him to travel to re-enter the US, 10 days, no travel.

We used one of the Zen pharmacy branches in London for our tests. Not cheap but close to us. They had their own deal with doctors to get a proof of recovery letter had we tested positive. It was not cheap but would’ve been easy to coordinate with them, they had a whole brochure, etc. I was worried as nephew was sneezing a lot and tired but he tested negative before we left and at home. Colds are making a comeback too.