Travelling from Switzerland to Italy and back again in September Border Question

You need to fill out the passenger locator form
https://app.euplf.eu/#/

And then you need to show either a green pass certificate or a negative Covid antigen or pcr test.

Currently if you transited through the UK you will need to quarantine for 5 days.

I crossed the border into Italy via France about 4 weeks ago on the bus and had to present the negative results of the antigen test that I got at a pharmacy in Chamonix in order to board the bus. At the Italian border the police got on the bus (like they use to do it years ago) and checked every passenger's passport.

Do you need a negative COVID test if you have a US CDC vaccination card? I will be crossing between Switzerland and Italy. Not planning to go to France.

It is not clear if your CDC card is enough.

JAZZ
I agree. Nothing seems really clear. So, would we need to get a test done while we were in Switzerland 3 days before crossing in to Italy? Where does one get tested in Switzerland?

FYI: https://www.ge.ch/en/covid-19-get-tested/where-can-one-be-tested-geneva

https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-us/planning/about-switzerland/covid-pcr-test/

Use this tool

You are entering Italy from Switzerland
You have been in USA

https://infocovid.viaggiaresicuri.it/returningtoitaly.html

You need both your CDC card and a negative test to enter from Switzerland.

https://www.salute.gov.it/portale/nuovocoronavirus/dettaglioContenutiNuovoCoronavirus.jsp?lingua=english&id=5412&area=nuovoCoronavirus&menu=vuoto

Back to what Jazz mentioned-
are you transitioning thru Heathrow?

Frank

I read the link you posted and read it as CDC card OR negative test OR recovery from COVID

We are flying from Houston to Geneva with one stop through Frankfurt to change planes. Not going through UK. We are renting a car while in Switzerland and Italy. Avoiding as much public transportation as possible to minimize any exposure. Our biggest concern is that we would test positive on our return and have to quarantine for at least 10 days before being allowed to return to US. But also wondering about the process/requirements at Swiss/Italian border crossing as we have never traveled to either country.

Given the ambiguity and capriciousness of the rules (a lot can happen between now and September 17), I would plan on getting an antigen test (cover yourself) before attempting to cross the border.

Jazz, I agree. We might just plan to get tested within the 3 days before going to Italy just to have every duck in a row. I've always said, "I'd rather have it and not need it that need it and not have it." But has anyone crossed from Switzerland to Italy lately? What is the process like? We've never travelled there and don't know what the border crossings are like. We travelled through Germany, Austria and Slovakia 2 years ago, but that was pre-COVID and, also, all of those countries are EU, so not border crossings to navigate.

Ok There has not been any from the USA on this forum that has reported on the current situation; pre-covid the border between Switzerland and Italy was open with no kind of check; I took the train from Lugano to Milan in 2019 and many here have taken the Bernina Express scenic train from Chur, Switzerland to Tirano, Italy without any kind of a check.

But has anyone crossed from Switzerland to Italy lately? What is the process like?

one person's experience may not be representative of the next person's or yours.

Different officers, different crossing place, different time of day and phase of the moon... I agree with play it safe and you can't (probably) go wrong...

Yes to Nigel, people forget that there are "rules" and then there are officials on the ground who can "adapt" those rules as they see fit. Customs, immigration, TSA folks have a lot of leeway in their jobs. Perhaps take some BINAX kits with you so you can always have a current test result.

We just returned from Switzerland for our son’s wedding after spending a week in Italy. Before we left we were quite anxious because the rules kept changing. It was better than I thought it was going to be. Our CDC vaccine card was accepted instead of the EU’s green pass, except we had to show it to a human (many places had scanners outside entrances to hold your phone up to). We did not drive, but used trains where they checked the card. We did have our PLF for both Italy (checked by the airline here in the States before we left) and for Switzerland (checked at the train station when we switched from an Italian train to a Swiss train at the border). My son and his bride drove with no issues at the border. They did have negative COVID tests from the States just in case but they were invalid when they crossed the border. They will be crossing back from Italy to fly home from Zurich in 2 days. I’ll let you know if they have issues. The only real issue we had was the return flight. Checking in at the airport they looked at our rapid tests, passports and tickets - easy - but after waiting at the gate this horrendous line formed of everyone with a US flight in the terminal having to get their test paperwork and affidavit (which we got when our tickets were checked) stamped by one of three workers so plan some extra time at the airport leaving. Enjoy!

m2smith,
Thank you for your information. This is very helpful and encouraging. I look forward to hearing how you son and daughter-in-law did crossing the Italian border to Switzerland in 2 days....