Returning to the USA From Germany - Covid-19

It isn't hard! If you need a PCR, simply look up where you can take them (often at airports, but lots of places) and their opening hours. You can make appointments on line easily. You will have to pay for it, and they range from about 60 Euros for the 24 hours to 160 Euros for the rapid ones, with a few outliers on price.

Antigen tests are even easier as you can get one seemingly on every corner. I don't know how the payment function works; locals get one free antigen test/week, and they are tracked via app. You can show up, scan a QR code, fill in the form, and get the swab. Within a short bit you have a test result in your inbox.

I haven't done this but I ran across this test provider while planning my October trip. I'm sure there are others too. It appears that an antigen test, inexpensive with a 20-minute turnaround, will be acceptable for return travel to the US. I'm hoping that this won't be needed by October but it doesn't seem to be a real problem.

You might find more useful threads in the "Covid-19 and Travel" category of this forum (middle column on the main forum page).

Thanks for the feedback. Between this and other threads, I notice that things are still shaking out. We are unlikely to put Coronavirus back in the bottle but I expect that procedures will be standardized and smoothed a bit.

The question is not where to get a test or how much it will cost!
The questions are:

• What happens if the test is positive?
• How long is the waiting time for a re-test?

I faced this issue just last week in Berlin. We were going to go to the airport 2 days before our flight to get the antigen test. We spoke to the concierge at the hotel who directed us to a testing location right around the corner from the hotel. We were able to register on a computer right there, got the test and the results were emailed to us about 15 minutes later. Zero cost!

Juedesf wrote:

"The question is not where to get a test or how much it will cost!
The questions are:
What happens if the test is positive?
How long is the waiting time for a re-test?"

That uncertainty is true every time we travel to Germany. There is always the chance of getting sick or having an accident.

We have our vaccines and will continue to use precautions. We will have insurance.

If we test positive for Covid - or have an accident or a heart attack - we will get help. I suspect the local authorities will be adamant about where we go for help or how we quarantine if we test positive. You can only fully prepare by staying home.