Americans Can Now Travel To Italy, But Only On “Quarantine-Free” Flights

@Angela @Chris thank you both for sharing your research/experiences with flying AA on these COVID tested flights, it has been a huge help! We are grateful. My wife and I just re-routed our travel plans from Greece to Italy based on this news from Delta/AA. Our original booking was with AA so we had to use them, even though Delta is way more organized. We are flying on 6/10 flight AA 236. We are traveling for leisure.

Here is what I have gathered from you:
- AA requires a test 48h prior to departure.
- The test can be from anywhere, not just their partners.
- It can be a rapid OR a PCR test.
- There are rapid tests available at JFK Terminal 5 for free, but it's a little chaotic.

To anyone else reading, I also called AA support and they verified any test, rapid or PCR, taken beforehand will work. To use the support rep's words "All we want to see if a negative test". It doesn't matter what brand or whatever it is. But it does need to be taken within the last 48h prior to boarding your flight. The rep also referred me to apply.joinsherpa.com for any Italy-required paperwork. Lastly, the rep informed me that flight AA 236 is indeed a COVID-tested flight - useful to verify since they don't actually spell flight numbers out like Delta does.

Here are my questions for @Angela and/or @Chris:
1. If my wife and I showed up to JFK without any prior testing (we're both fully vaccinated), could we hypothetically get everything we need at the airport or on the flight? E.g. rapid test, all paperwork such as the EU locator form, one of you mentioned a QR code...what is the QR code?
2. @Chris, how long did the rapid test at JFK take you?

Apologies for any redundancy - just don't want to get turned away at the gate for our flight!

Things change frequently for different reasons. Italy intends to open up to UK and US tourists. It did so with Covid tested flights. Unfortunately, in the last few days some things have happened that have complicated the reopening. First, the European Union made a plan to reopen to the US and it was approved by the members. The EU expected reciprocity from the US and took a door in the face. Now the EU is putting pressure on Italy, Greece and Spain not to open up to American and British tourists.
Second, the Italian government is afraid of public opinion, Italians cannot come to the US, not even for work or to find relatives, even if vaccinated. This disparity is creating a lot of uncertainty in decisions. From rumors I believe they will leave things unfinished for a while by keeping only the entrance with covid tested flights.

Hey Ben,

Thanks for this info, it is much appreciated and well written.

I booked a non-refundable flight (for tourism) Chicago to Rome on July 10 with TAP (via Lisbon), and was not given any info about potential restrictions. Completely my fault for not doing much restriction research beforehand (I figured the EU 'all clear' was enough).

Now I'm freaking out that we won't be able to travel and I'll lose my booking fee. However, your article has calmed me down by saying the rules will become even looser in the next few weeks. Is there any other info you can provide on the next round of loosening measures? Do you think I will be fine with my flight as is? Both of us travellers are fully vaxxed by the way.

@Renee Smith - I read some Italian blogs and online newspapers every day. As it stands right now, the answer is you have to be on a COVID-tested flight or you can not enter without quarantining but that SHOULD change by July. Having said that, I have learned that in Italy nothing happens as it should or on schedule. The Eu's green pass should be available by then, so you should be fine. Ansa.it and thelocal.it try to stay on top of the changes going on, so you may want to read them each day (thelocal.it has a membership fee to read over two articles a month). There should be more of a news release about this tomorrow from the EU.

@Angela, if it wasn’t clear, I was on the plane when I wrote my last note.

My arrival with AA was pretty easy. They made an announcement as we were deplaning. I got to the testing facility before most other passengers because I knew the drill. Just follow the pink signs to the testing facility. From the baggage claim, you have to walk most of the length of the airport on the lower level.

There is no cost for the test, which was a much quicker process than the one in terminal 5 at JFK.

Also, be sure to fill out your Italian health declaration form before you land. There’s a line for that hurdle before you go through immigration.

Good luck.

@Angela, @Al Dente -
I just did this drill on AA, JFK-MXP, and while it's more difficult/unclear than with Delta in most ways, at least you don't need a PCR test (and 2 tests are better than 3). The AA requirement is one molecular or antigen test within 48 hours of boarding. How you get the test seems to be up to you. One decent but time-consuming option is to go to the free public testing facility in Terminal 5. Just follow the signs to COVID-19 testing when you get off the Air Train.

I got to the airport (prepared to pay) 4 hours early and had time to spare. Of course, these flights will likely get more crowded in the coming days, so factor that into your schedule.

It's crazy that the requirements are different for the two airlines. On something like this, you'd think the Italian government would aim for consistent requirements...OH, wait. Never mind. :)

BE FOREWARNED!
My stepfather lives in Southern Italy and runs a small biological farm there. At around 83, with a slight health issue, he still maintains the daily workings alone.
Just before the pandemic hit the US last year my sister bought a ticket online (from one of those cheaper tickets websites) for an extended trip to help our dad from late spring through the summer months. She was supposed to leave April 1st but was pushed back by the airline to May 8th with changes to itinerary.
She left from Oregon, I believe on AA, spent the better part of a day travelling to NY (2 stopovers) then on to London, arriving at Heathrow on May 10th.
She was supposed to leave on Alitalia to Rome, then on to a small airport in Southern Italy, where our father was to meet her.
Instead, Alitalia refused her boarding the flight stating she needed proof of 'essential' travel into the country. She ended up being stranded at the airport for 3 days: no cell phone access where she was, she had to beg and plead in order to convince a rep from Alitalia to call me in Southern CA, so he could tell me what was required for them to allow entrance into the country__I told him to email the specifics they needed so I could forward it to our dad, so my sister could arrive to her final destination as soon as possible; it took a day to get the necessary notarized papers from his doctor stating he needed help on the farm because of his health situation then, to the proper authority at Alitalia.
After all that, they still denied my sister stating it wasn't a "good enough" reason.
She, then, had to deal with the hassle of a return flight home, which took another 2 days because of extended layovers. The whole ordeal at Heathrow was a 'royal pain', as well. No access to food or water because all the shops were closed, do to the pandemic, and other troublesome situations during that time.
Since my sister's return, she has fought with the airline companies for, at the least, a portion of a refund__not only due to her not reaching her destination through Alitalia, but because NONE of the airlines were restricting her travel plans from the beginning, until she reached London, and there were no accomodations available! Of course, she wasn't the only stranded passenger, there were a few others.
She eventually received a partial refund from AA, however, Alitalia refuses to refund their portion of her plans, as they say they are not responsible!
To note, my sister had contacted the Italian Consulate in the US prior to her trip and there were no restrictions to enter the country. Neither, were there any through the online ticket purchasing website!
My take on all this is, the airlines have been working it all so as not to lose money through tickets already purchased and to convince people to continue purchasing for future flights, even when they have no clue as to when that would be feasable.
At the same time recently, my father told me Italy was opening up, yet the media was saying Italy was not allowing travel from the US into Rome__again, BE FOREWARNED!

I suspect it’s just a logistical issue with respect to the “quarantine-free flight” labeling. American, Delta, and Alitalia are probably the three biggest operators in these markets. They’d be the best equipped – and probably most willing – to take some of the initiative themselves to liaise with the government and airport authorities, to coordinate and staff out the on-site testing service, to manage the arriving passenger flows to present a streamlined experience for passengers.

My thoughts about the reason they're using special flights instead of just turning people away at the border is the burden of responsibility. I was nearly turned away from entering Ireland one time, and it was explained that Ireland would be responsible for deporting me back to where I flew in from. I imagine if someone ineligible to enter Italy does arrive, Italy has to go through the legal channels and pay to have them deported. It's cheaper and easier bureaucratically (which is a nightmare here in Italy!) to simply stop them at the departure airport instead.