Estonia, Iceland turn red on new Czech Covid-19 travel map

Travel to the Czech Republic from Iceland, Estonia, and Madeira will be more complicated as of Monday, when these countries turn from medium-risk orange to high-risk red on the latest Covid-19 travel map issued by the Czech Health Ministry.

Denmark and Luxembourg, meanwhile, will move in the opposite direction, going from red to orange.

The latest map also sees additional color changes for other countries, but these will not affect travel conditions to the Czech Republic.

The Czech Health Ministry updates its travel map weekly based on data released by the European Centre of Disease Prevention and Control.

As of Monday, green countries in Europe with low risk of infection will include Albania, Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and the Vatican.

Among non-European states, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Lebanon, Macao, New Zealand, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan and the USA are also green.

Lithuania, San Marino and Sweden will turn from green moderate-risk orange group in the new map. Denmark and Luxembourg move from high-risk red to orange, joining Belgium, Finland, Italy and Switzerland.

When travelling from green and orange countries to the Czech Republic, passengers must take an antigen or PCR test for Covid-19 before leaving or within five days of arrival.

From Monday, red countries with a high risk of infection will include Estonia, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, the Canaries, the Azores, and Madeira.

Countries not mentioned above are considered dark red countries of very high risk, and they will be joined by Monaco as of Monday.

When travelling to the Czech Republic from a red or a dark-red country, travelers must quarantine for at least five days after arrival, and take a PCR test between 5-14 days after entering the Czech Republic. If negative for Covid-19, they may leave quarantine. When traveling from red or dark red countries by public transport, including airlines, a negative Covid-19 test is also needed before entering the Czech Republic.

The above travel conditions do not apply to those whose are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 (at least two weeks after their final dose) or those who underwent the infection in the past 180 days.

All travelers must fill in an arrival form when entering the Czech Republic, regardless of the color of country they are coming from or their vaccination status.

"Please note that the transport carriers may set stricter rules of their own, which is why we recommend that all families carefully study, before their journey, the conditions set by the carrier they travel with," the Health Ministry advises.

The Ministry has warned against travelling to countries with an extreme risk of infection. These countries include Botswana, Brazil, Colombia, Eswatini, India, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Paraguay, Peru, Russia, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

If returning from these states, fully vaccinated travelers or those who have had Covid-19 in the past 180 days do not have to take a test or quarantine. Others must take a PCR test before entering the Czech Republic and spend ten days in quarantine after arrival. They may leave quarantine after the tenth day if they test negative for Covid-19.