Travel TO Germany in November

with no restrictions by November?

Not going to get me to make that bet.

Hi Joe, at this time travel.state.gov says "do not travel" to Germany: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Germany.html. What you need to do is enroll in STEP: https://step.state.gov/step/ which will keep you informed on what you need to know if planning a trip anywhere.

Germany has been one of the most precise and cautious countries in the EU with respect to COVID-19 policy. It has very specific numbers it is targeting for opening up the country for its own citizens and for international travelers.

From talking to friends in Germany, I would be surprised if Germany had given up on face masks and social distancing by the time November arrives, If those count as "restrictions," I think it is probably unrealistic to expect those to be gone. I wouldn't be terribly surprised to see the persistence of a COVID-19 test requirement even for those who are vaccinated.

But... it's hard to predict what Germany's policy will be in 4 weeks, let alone November. We'll see how things play out.

A number of large festivals, races and conventions in Germany have been cancelled already for Autumn 2021 -- most notably the Oktoberfest in Munich (which however is several months before November).

I would say "no restrictions" is rather unlikely, but it is 100% impossible to say at this point. The other commentators are correct, however, that the German approach so far has been very focused on numbers, and that is unlikely to change.

Thank you for your input, everyone! I'm a co-coordinator of retreat in Rothenburg ob der Tauber for European missionaries from all across Central Europe and the UK each November. Obviously, we had to cancel last November. Just trying to get a feel for what this November will look like. Thanks again!

Based on the current vaccination situation, I think that fully vaccinated people will be able to travel to a retreat without too much trouble. It's likely that gastronomy and hotels will be open to those fully vaccinated, though proof of vaccination and possibly negative tests will likely be required. Mask mandates will probably still apply in some indoor situations, and of course there may be restrictions on the size of gatherings. But all of this is speculation. Germany has been cautious about reopening anything, and Germans have been pretty accepting of masks; they will likely be around for some time to come. The vaccine rollouts and easing of restrictions have been very slow, but are picking up steam--then again, that may just be a summer thing as Germans move outdoors (Germans are completely solar powered and must be outdoors if the sun is out).

The situation changes so frequently that predicting is hard, but this is my best guess as someone living in Germany.