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Practical scenarios for testing positive

As we are all facing the possibility of needing to take a Covid test prior to entry into Italy and again on our return to the US (unless entry requirements are somehow dropped in the nick of time), I thought it might be helpful to discuss what the practical scenarios/ramifications would be in the event of testing positive in the following cases:

  1. Testing positive right before your tour (let’s say within 48 hours).
  2. Testing positive during your tour.
  3. Testing positive within 24 hours of your return to the US.

For example, in the event that you tested positive before your tour, would you then remain quarantined in the city of your departure while other members of your group continued on with the tour, and then you just return home alone? If you tested positive during your tour, would you then quarantine in that city while other members of your group continued on he tour, and then you later rejoin the tour or just return home alone? If you tested positive at the end of your tour, would you then remain in that city alone while other members of your group flew home without you, and then you would fly home alone after your quarantine? Or do you see your scenarios in a different way? In each of these scenarios, I imagine that you would have to quickly improvise lodgings for your quarantine and a rescheduled plane ride home. Do you envision other scenarios or plans that would have to be made? Other related issues? What if you were traveling in a group of 3 or 4 as a family, or traveling companions, etc.?

Since this would be something all of us would need to consider in the event of testing positive, what are your practical plan B’s?

Posted by
8401 posts

I travel solo so I have no agonizing decisions to make about what happens to the rest of my party!

  1. Trip cancelled. (People should test before leaving home as well as 48 hours prior to tour) 2.and 3: I’ll deal with these situations at the time. I refuse to spend too much time worrying about this.
Posted by
973 posts

Since we are a family, it’s all or none who go. But I will tell you that we will be testing ourselves coming back the day before the “official” 24 hour test. If one of us tests positive, then we can make plans without anyone knowing this. I’m retired so I would stay back with whoever. If I’m positive, my husband would stay back.

Posted by
2427 posts

Lulu,

That is a good plan. It gives you a little more time to plan if you have to quarantine.

Posted by
484 posts

I'm nervous about testing positive before I leave, but at least if that happens I can simply stay home and try to recoup as much money as possible through cancellations, but this is my first solo trip overseas and the fear of testing positive and not being able to return home has me worried to the point that I'm considering postponing to some unknown date. Does anyone know the percentage of people who actually test positive before returning to the US from Italy? Maybe if it was some small number, I'd feel more confident. It's frustrating to see the US dropping mask mandates and opening back up, but not dropping the entry testing requirement. It doesn't seem logical, at least for fully vaccinated people. I'm staying in AirBnBs, so I would most likely have to go to a quarantine facility if I get stuck in Rome. Does anyone know what these places are like? Are the rooms tiny? Are there windows or areas where you can be outside?

Posted by
312 posts

My question is if one does test positive in Italy and cannot return home, how long does one quarantine? Here in the states it is 5 days.
Also, does one have to take covid tests until it is negative? That can be weeks or even months. Is there any written guidance on this?

Posted by
3128 posts

All very good questions; and ones I have been thinking about, as I would like to plan a trip to Italy for this September.

My big worry is: not about getting there; as if you test positive before you leave, you can go home to your own house.
It's : what do I actually do next if I test positive in Italy before I return home?
Are there hotels specifically earmarked for quarantining passengers at short notice?
How does one get food?
How do you find that out?
Are they only in bigger cities like Rome or Naples?
What if I'm booked to fly home from Florence or Bologna?

It's all so vague, that no wonder it puts a lot of us off travel right now.

Some anecdotes from someone who has experienced this would be great to read.

Posted by
8401 posts
Posted by
973 posts

It’s a concern many of us have. The U,S. Travel industry is pressuring the government to lift that restriction. It’s ridiculous, since we have no such restriction to fly all over the place in our country, it makes no sense. Cases are falling drastically in Italy. This virus is going nowhere. It’s going to mutate like the flu. We have a vaccine, it’s time to move on.

Posted by
1207 posts

A dear friend tested positive 24 hours before LEAVING Italy in January 2022. He had to quarantine, in his hotel in Rome, for many days. At one point he was transported by guys in hazmat suits to a Covid hotel. The physician there said that he wasn't sick enough to be admitted to the Covid hotel (my friend never had any symptoms!) and told him to go quarantine somewhere else. (FYI: He was served a meal during his several hours at the Covid hotel and told me that the food was terrible.) He took a taxi back to his original hotel. His Rome hotel staff helped him arrange food deliveries from nearby restaurants. The Italians that he dealt with (hotel staff, pharmacists down the street from his hotel where he kept going for Covid tests, and the physician at the Covid hotel) all told him that the Italian Ministry of Health required that he test negative before he would be allowed to fly. This is contradictory to the US govt. requirement (for entry to the US) that if you test positive, then you need to quarantine for some period of days (5? 7? 10?) and then get a letter from a health care provider stating that you are no longer infectious and are cleared to fly. My friend finally got that letter from his US physician and, with a printed copy of his original positive test (an internet proctored test) and a printed copy of the letter from his US physician, booked a new United flight and came home. By the way: United was wonderful and did not charge him any change fees, etc., because his flight changes were Covid-related. I wrote a much longer forum post a couple of weeks ago about his ordeal. It is, in part, a story of what NOT to do if you test positive before flying back to the US, so might be of interest to you: https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/testing-covid-positive-in-italy-a-true-story

Posted by
111 posts

Sarah Murdoch, a former RS tour guide, is in Italy right now with her kids. She mentioned that there is talk of lifting the testing requirements for entry into Italy in March.