Philippines is Open but be cautious

[Dom@DiveAdvice]

As many of us have heard in the news, and many thru our own contacts, the Philippine Government today opened the country to travelers without quarantine for the first time in nearly two years. However please be cautious before you book your dream trip to the Tubbataha reefs as that is still not fully open, as commented below by one of the top liveaboard operators in the Philippines. We all hope and feel confident that by March, when the season gets under way, that the gateway Pto Princesa, will be fully open, but I urge clients to be cautious in their planning and maybe wait a bit longer to see how it all develops. Dom at DiveAdvice.com

Philippines to Reopen its Borders to Tourism! No Test on Arrival, No Quarantine!

Hi Dom I am sure you must have seen the news or read about it… The Philippines is reopening its borders to tourism without the need to undergo any quarantine and on-arrival COVID tests! Just a pre-departure flight PCR Test (Negative) within 48hrs of your scheduled flight departure time! The official news, a long-winded read can be found here but the important criteria are in page 3. It is certainly a surprised announcement last week but nevertheless a pleasant surprise. Solitude Acacia Resort will definitely be benefiting from it and we are already receiving a steady traffic of enquiries and bookings that will see us welcome our first international guests in early March. We are certainly looking forward to it! emailus@solitude-acacia.com for your enquires! The biggest cheers were reserved for Tubbataha of course. Solitude One is in her final stages of getting ship shape ready for operations (again) but the sanguine mood for Tubbataha hinges on the city of Puerto Princesa. It is little unknown that domestic travel into cities within the Philippines are regulated independently by its local government. Hence, at this juncture, Puerto Princesa is still in Level 3 Restrictions (in short: You will likely not want to travel into Puerto Princesa for vacation) until 15 Feb 2022 (No adjustments to current health protocols in Puerto Princesa until February 15th). Hopefully over the next few days, we will be able to receive some news as to what the local government will decide. We are hopeful that Puerto Princesa will to align itself with the federal government’s act of reopening the international borders for tourism but obviously, there is always a chance that they may not. Hence, we reserve our announcement that we are going to be operating cruises (but we are optimistic that we will!) when we hear the next update from the city of Puerto Princesa government on their plans. In the meantime, we still have availability (due to some cancellations made prior to the announcement of reopening of international borders in some of our scheduled cruises for Tubbataha 2022 season, and of course your clients can find those spaces on your own website. Stay tuned to our social media channels for progressive updates as they happen! Have a great week ahead! Andrew Lok Dominick Macan Dive Advice Travel dom@diveadvice.com www.diveadvice.com Tel: +33 492 94 02 99 (France) SKYPE: adventuredom Find available spaces, book a trip on a dive liveaboard | Dive Advice … for up-to-date liveaboard availability worldwide "In Partnership with Amazing Adventures Travel of Mill Valley, California"

 

[Cert1967]

What about folks who have recovered from Covid?

PCR Test for COVID-19: What It Is, How Its Done, What The Results Mean

A PCR test for COVID-19 is a test used to diagnose people infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

my.clevelandclinic.org

Cleveland Clinic says

How long do you test positive after having had COVID-19?

“Because the PCR test is so sensitive, it can detect very small amounts of virus material. This means that the test can continue to detect fragments of SARS-CoV-2 virus even after you’ve recovered from COVID-19 and are no longer contagious. So you may continue to test positive if you've had COVID-19 in the distant past, even though you can’t spread the SARS-CoV-2 …”

 

[drk5036]

What about folks who have recovered from Covid?

PCR Test for COVID-19: What It Is, How Its Done, What The Results Mean

A PCR test for COVID-19 is a test used to diagnose people infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

my.clevelandclinic.org

Cleveland Clinic says

How long do you test positive after having had COVID-19?

“Because the PCR test is so sensitive, it can detect very small amounts of virus material. This means that the test can continue to detect fragments of SARS-CoV-2 virus even after you’ve recovered from COVID-19 and are no longer contagious. So you may continue to test positive if you've had COVID-19 in the distant past, even though you can’t spread the SARS-CoV-2 …”

If you can’t pass a PCR, you can’t go. Same for Japan. No “recently tested positive but approved to travel by a doctor” option.

 

[drk5036]

But you could try printing off a webpage from the Cleveland clinic and see how the immigration officers feel about it

 

[Dom@DiveAdvice]

Sorry but no idea. You would need to check with the Philippines Regulations online. I think I would have to be a rocket scientist to keep up with the daily changes in the Covid regulations in every country we deal with but according to a client in Maldives who tested positive for the infection but shows no symptoms, the CDC informed him that after 10 days he should be clear for travel, even if showing a positive response to the test. Every country is different but for my clients who book with me I always go the extra nine yards and double check whatever I can. At your service. Dom

 

[aquabluegreg]

I don't think I would book a trip and air tickets, then fly to the Philippines knowing the entry requirements and knowing you tested positive, and expect a border agent to make an exception based on something printed off a website. But that's just me.

 

[Blackcrusader]

Good news.


Malacañang announces on Friday, May 27, that Philippines is not requiring foreigners and Filipinos to submit pre-departure COVID-19 test when arriving in the Philippines from abroad, as long as they are fully vaccinated and have had one booster shot.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

The resolution you posted says nothing about foreigners. We arrived last week and had to submit a negative test result within 48 hours of our flight.
I found this news. You are correct.

RT-PCR test no longer needed for fully-vaxxed travelers

MANILA – Fully-vaccinated Filipinos and foreigners who will enter the Philippines beginning May 30 are no longer required to present a negative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test upon arrival in the Philippines.In an online press briefing, acting Deputy...

www.pna.gov.ph

 

[Blackcrusader]

The resolution you posted says nothing about foreigners. We arrived last week and had to submit a negative test result within 48 hours of our flight.
I found this news. You are correct.

Yup it's good news.

Philippines drops Covid-19 tests for vaccinated travellers | The National

Arriving passengers who have had three doses of an approved jab no longer need to submit pre-departure negative test results

www.thenationalnews.com

 

[Centrals]

Entry regulation changes quickly. There is no way anyone can predict what will happen within days let alone week/month.
One can only plan the trip based on what is available at the time of planning. No difference from eg booking a flight.
Travel insurance is very important.