Negative covid-19 test prior to joining a tour

That is the great question we all face when contemplating travel at this time. Testing positive at any point in the trip is a very real possibility that could throw a big wrench into your plans. No one can tell you what will be happening six months from now. If you have some time before the cancellation deadline, wait and see what happens. Of course you also have to consider airfare. And the possibility of testing positive at the end of the tour and needing to quarantine in a potentially very expensive place while potentially not only being asymptomatic, but potentially feeling really miserable. Let’s say you test positive and feel really sick. Your husband may get it a few days later, extending the quarantine time.

Things may change before your trip.

A friend of mine travelled from the U.K. to Spain last month. He had a negative test the day of the flight. He’s double vaccinated and had the booster and wore a mask at the airport and on the flight except when eating. He wore a mask whenever indoors in Spain. Five days into the trip, he developed a slight cough and tested positive, so he isolated in his cottage. He was still positive 5 days later, but negative by day 10. He’s no idea where he caught Covid as he thought he had been careful.

Covid rates will hopefully be lower in the summer, but it isn’t going away, we just have to learn to live with it and getting infected is a risk.

This is quite similar to the current requirements for testing prior to a cruise. I’ve done this twice during the pandemic (including peak of omricon) and I know there is that underlying worry that something could go wrong until you see that negative test result. I also know the sense of confidence that I experienced that my fellow travelers were all vaccinated and had, at least in one recent moment, tested negative. Was there still a risk for Covid? Sure, but it was as small as reasonable people could make it.

These are the steps that I think can be taken to decrease the risks of getting a last minute positive Covid test prior to a trip. 2 weeks out, start minimizing extra contacts. 1 week out, do an over the counter Covid test to confirm a baseline of negative. Really reduce contacts that last week. Take your test.

There is no way to completely eliminate the possibility of a positive test prior to, during, or at the end of any trip. You need to be able to accept that risk to travel at this time. A good travel insurance policy is essential to cover trip cancellation or trip interruption, just in case.

I expect that many people will cancel RS tours if this testing requirement is not dropped. As you point out, the risk of financial loss and quarantine time triggered by an asymptotic positive test after fully paying for the tour and flying to Europe will not be acceptable to many. Further, there seems little health benefit to a single test before a 7 to 21 day tour of fully vaccinated travelers. I hope RS rethinks and removes this testing requirement.

So your concern is not that you might give Covid anyone else but that you might be inconvenienced.

My concern is that one test before a multi day tour of vaccinated travelers provides very little health benefit but injects very serious financial risks.

Several friends have tested positive one day, and they were retested 2 days later and were tested negative.
Either they had a false negative or a false positive. They never went back for testing again.
I was unaware that a negative test is required by RS. I have not seen any email regarding this testing requirement.

As with all threads on this topic, it is really important to keep responses travel related and not get off track or the thread will simply disappear.

I think the RS testing requirement is in place now only for tours starting in March or April. Whether it will still be in place for August tours is anyone's guess. Whether Switzerland will require a negative test for entry in August is also anyone's guess. Likewise, whether the US will still require a negative test within a day before entry, or three days before (as pre-omicron), or at all, is anyone's guess.

If the RS people keep the requirement, I hope they'll clarify whether it applies to the day before the tour starts or 24 hours before it starts, since most tours start in late afternoon. And I hope they'll have city-specific advice about testing facilities for tour members who show up ahead of the start date, as they recommend.

Whether you're optimistic or not is a personality trait that no one can recommend for or against. I'll be self-testing before any substantial trip whether a test is required or not, because I don't want to get sick or infect others while traveling. I suggest you consider trip insurance to protect you against possible illness that either prevents or shortens your trip. Hope you stay healthy and have a great tour!

My concern is that one test before a multi day tour of vaccinated
travelers provides very little health benefit but injects very serious
financial risks.

Very little health benefit? If you are positive, then you can't join the tour, which is an immense benefit to the other
members of the tour. And anyone else who you might otherwise unknowingly infect. And you do know that vaccination does not prevent infection.

If a quarantine period would cause you serious financial difficulty, then I would suggest taking out an insurance e policy that covers that eventuality. We are currently near the end of a 2 week trip, and consider the cost of that policy money well spent for the peace of mind. Fortunately for us our pre return PCR test was negative.

Not one person on this earth knows what the pandemic situation will be in August. Restrictions may be completely lifted. Or we may be faced sith a new, even more lethal variation. Only time will tell. You have to decide for yourself how long you will wait to make the decision to cancel.

"I think the RS testing requirement is in place now only for tours starting in March or April."

It's still listed as being required for our VIT tour starting in May, states "present a negative COVID-19 viral test (PCR or antigen) taken within 48 hours of the first day of your tour depending on your tour start date. We will notify you by email about specific testing requirements two months prior to the start of your tour."

Does add a little extra stress since instead of being good to go with a negative test before flying to Italy we'll have to test again after being there a couple of days pre-tour. Will just be watching for updates along with everyone else.

As of 1/22/2022 Switzerland is no longer requiring a negative test result in order to enter the country for fully vaccinated or recovered persons.

I realize that things can change over time….both positive and negative….we had the same angst getting tested to fly to Paris and return to US at XMAS. The difference for us was if we tested + before flight…we could still cancel our trip without financial concerns.