Ministry exempts vaccinated tourists from Covid tests

By Lan Huong October 21, 2021 | 01:15 am PT

Tourists queue at a cable car station leading to Ba Den Mountain in Tay Ninh Province, southern Vietnam, October 2021. Photo courtesy of Saco Travel

Fully immunized domestic tourists will only be coronavirus-tested if showing symptoms or hailing from high-risk areas, the tourism ministry stated.

In a new guideline for the tourism industry to adapt to the new normal period, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the fully vaccinated against Covid-19 or those recovered from the disease no longer need to furnish a negative Covid certificate when traveling to other localities.

They will only be tested for Covid if they show symptoms including fever, coughing, fatigue, a sore throat or difficulty breathing, or when arriving from high-risk or locked down zones.

Accommodation facilities and tourist establishments are allowed to operate at 100 percent capacity in ‘green zones’ with low Covid risks. Tourist destinations, historical sites and museums can resume normal operations but must comply with pandemic prevention measures.

In ‘yellow zones’ with medium risks, accommodation facilities and tourist businesses are allowed to operate at 100 percent capacity while tourist sites serve no more than 20 people and ensure social distancing.

‘Orange zones’ with high risks will allow accommodation facilities and dining establishments to only operate at half their capacity. Indoor sightseeing activities must limit the number of tourists at one time to below 25 while tourist sites serve no more than 10 people.

For ‘red zones’ with very high risks, tourism activities must remain suspended while accommodation facilities and dining establishments are allowed to operate but only at 30 percent capacity.

A government directive on assessing the pandemic level in each locality comprises two primary criteria: the proportion of people aged 18 and more that have been vaccinated, and the number of new cases per 100,000 people in a week. Based on these, areas are classified into zones with very high, high, medium and low risks.

58 of 63 cities and provinces in the country have announced their risk level and only the southern Binh Duong Province has classified itself as of high risk. Hanoi is a low-risk area while HCMC and Da Nang are of medium risk.

With the pandemic situation under control, some tourism hotspots in Vietnam have eased social distancing restrictions and resumed tourism activities since early October. However, some localities still require fully vaccinated tourists to furnish a negative test result for the novel coronavirus.