Are you ready to travel? Well, there’s a lot to know these days, if you haven’t been paying attention, with all the other crazy things going on in today’s world, but this is not stopping those with the desire to go! Check out some random news about travel from mid-summer 2022.
U.S. passports ranked in the world’s top 10
The United States passport ranked 7th in a worldwide ranking of the most powerful passports this year. Using data from IATA, the Henley Passport Index ranks passports according to the number of destinations their holders can access visa-free or with a visa-on-arrival. The holders of a U.S. passport can travel to 186 countries without needing to get a visa beforehand.
London Heathrow Airport Puts Caps on Departures
As travel & staff shortages have continued this summer, London’s Heathrow Airport announced it would do whatAmsterdam’s Schiphol did in capping departures. They plan to limit the number of daily departing passengers to 100,000 at least until 9/11/22. Heathrow’s operators indicate more tickets have already been sold on many days, so they asked airlines not to sell new ones for that period. British Airways, among others, had already announced schedule cuts. As per Heathrow’s operators, most existing bookings won’t be affected, but some airlines might still need to move flights or cancel itineraries. Keep a close eye on your itinerary if you’re traveling through Heathrow. If your flight gets canceled or altered, get in touch with your airline or travel agent, if you booked with one, to discuss your options.
CAT Scanners are Speeding up TSA lines & Which U.S. Airports already have them
TSA is installing new technology to their security checks to make travel a little easier this summer. One of the most significant improvements are Credential Authentication Technology scanners. Eliminating the need to present boarding passes to personnel, it automatically matches a traveler’s ID with their upcoming flight information, and this is how CAT scanners will speed up TSA lines. As of May 2022, TSA has installed 1,600+ scanners in 176 airports, including Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International, Boston Logan International, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles International, Chicago’s O’Hare & Midway, Washington, D.C.’s 2 airports plus New York’s John F. Kennedy (JFK) and LaGuardia (LGA). They will continue to roll out the technology nationwide, not just at bigger airports.
Tip: Read more about this on TSA’s website by clicking here.
U.S. Dropped Tests for all Air travelers, but Canada Resumed Random Arrival Testing
Starting June 12, 2022, travelers entering the U.S. by air are no longer required to take a pre-departure COVID-19 test. The rule change came over a year after the US began requiring a negative test for entry & more than 2 years since the pandemic started. Those entering the U.S. by land or ferry will still have to be fully vaccinated. They don’t need to take tests. However, on July 19, 2022, Canada resumed random arrival testing at four major airports: Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal, and Toronto.
Belize Ditched All of its COVID-19 Entry Restrictions
Belize, located in Central America, removed pandemic-related entry restrictions on July 15, 2022. Travelers no longer need to show proof of vaccination or even a negative COVID-19 test to enter land & sea borders of Belize. Also, visitors don’t have to purchase the Belize Travel Health Insurance plan, but the country does continue to offer it as an optional and encouraged add-on. The policy costs $18 for three weeks. That’s pretty good for health insurance! But I do still recommend travel insurance since it covers so much more.
With the ever-changing landscape of policies, regulations, rules, requirements, vaccinations, tests, visas, passports, air travel rules and more, you either really should be ready to spend a lot of time researching – because the internet is full of random information – some true and some not – about the latest in travel. Always start with travel.state.gov but if you would like to work with Easy Breezy Journeys, you can always reach out to discuss your trip and how we can work together. I am here to help!
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