Canadian Flying During Covid-19?
We’ve got a little chaos to curate.
Attention Canadians Travelling to the USA!
The pandemic has made things a little wild with travel. Now we all have extra rules to follow if we want to get to our destinations! There are a few to point out, which are:
wear a mask within all airports
have proof of vaccination
have proof of a negative Covid test (what type depends on where you are flying)
wear a mask on the plane (if you don’t, you’ll be on the wrong side of the tarmac before you know it!)
stay seated on the aircraft — no more wandering around for your leg exercises… air flight attendants say it helps them trace contacts of exposure if people remain seated
SOME airports and airlines require specific types of masks (not cloth masks, for instance… but staff will provide you one if you have the wrong type)
Easy as one, two, three!
Or at least, at first glance it is. Here’s the rub. Many folks have been taken advantage of by paying for wayyyyy too expensive Covid tests while travelling. Covid tests can be free, or you can pay $400 for them. Both equally get you across the border. Both can be equally as fast.
Going to the USA is easy because all you need is an antigen test.
Coming back from the USA is easy because Covid tests are free, if you know where to go! For Canada, you require a molecular test.
It’s that last part that has had a hiccup, recently. Details below.
Certain pharmacies give free molecular Covid tests: CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, etc.
I usually never have an issue, nor have those I travel with. However! That changed because of the Omicron variant (seriously, every time I say that word I envision that Futurama alien from Omicron Persii 8… Lrrr). Thanks to Omicron, pharmacies such as the above are experiencing a shortage of tests and some people are even having their tests cancelled. Cancelled, and leaving them hung out to dry as to where and how to get tested to travel abroad (and back to Canada!). Don’t want to get stuck across the border? Yeah no, me neither.
So if you’ve taken it upon yourself to travel, such as my mother recently has…. let me break it down for you how your experience might go, and how to best prepare.
My mom had a particularly unpleasant trip change. She was supposed to go on an awesome cruise along the equator…. but due to recent developments, it all got cancelled last minute! SO yes, that’s the first thing. First their cruise was cancelled. Ok. That’s fine, she will go to Florida instead. But there goes their onboard Covid tests to get home… new plan of action is required.
Secondly, she had to find a different place to get tested — in Florida — for when she returns from her trip. Walgreens was ‘unavailable’ for tests, because they are all experiencing a shortage due to Omicron.
Thirdly, I booked her a test that she is paying $150 USD for… as a last resort. If she manages to find a walk-in site or a pharmacy that does free Covid tests and will deliver her results in time, she can always cancel that same for-a-fee test.
So what option is best for you? Well, you need to figure out what’s available in your area. Google maps are surprisingly good for that — just type in ‘Covid testing site’. Look at the reviews to see how fast, slow, or reliable these are. Make sure people use it for TRAVEL, as results for travel require certain information. A test result for travel should say the following:
your name (full, as on your passport)
the practitioners name and clinic that conducted the test
what type of test it is, and what time/date it was taken
the result (negative, hopefully)
Negative result? Good to go? Not so fast!
If you’ve gotten the above sorted and you were emailed your results for a valid molecular test …. just hold your horses, for a moment. Are you flying direct to your country of destination? Or is there a connection?
I once almost couldn’t get on my flight because I had a connection from LA to Denver, and the layover was 6 hours. I had been tested 3 days before my flight. I was BARELY eligible for my flight, because the test has to be taken 72 hours before your flight that embarks TO YOUR DESTINATION COUNTRY. That means, in my instance, the Denver flight. Not the LA flight. I was safe by 16 minutes.
Worried your flight is going to get delayed and mess you up? Well, double check the rules of your country and airline. For me, personally, I know my rules say that it has to be 72 hours before the ORIGINAL DEPARTING TIME of your flight. If it had been delayed, I would still be safe. It’s the flight time on the ticket that matters.
So make sure you are within the valid TIME LIMIT of your test results being applicable to your flight.
And that’s it!
My advice to my mom was exactly what I always do:
book a for-a-fee test as a last resort. Book it FIRST, make sure it is cancellable.
try to scout out free testing sites and get it done that way. Give yourself two to three days for results.
Make sure you know what type of tests they do, and what method they deliver the results with. It has to be ‘ok to travel’ — which means it must have that information I provided above.
And that’s it! Par for the course, except it’s a bit more stressful and hectic now that options are a bit more limited thanks to Omicron. Unfortunately, that means you might have to pay out of pocket for a molecular test, since availability is key here. And due to a surge in tests required for Omicron, that means availability is not always there. I think my mom is all prepared now, though. And if she can do it, anyone can!
Of course, information is changing all the time — so remember this is my personal experience and what I have found works for me and those I know. Things might change down the road, too!
Just to break it down once more, here it is:
Are you requiring a test to enter Canada? Yes? Make sure it is a molecular type test! NAAT, PCR, etc.
Make sure the test sample is taken NO MORE than 72 hours before the flight that brings you to Canada. Pay attention to the departure time of any connecting flights.
Scout for FREE testing sites before committing to a for-a-fee test.
Make sure the results of the test are delivered via EMAIL or PRINT OUT, and contain your full name, the clinic’s ID that did the test, the type of test used, as well as the date of the test and the result.
The above is just for folks going from the USA to Canada. Obviously getting to the USA is a lot easier… just take an antigen test and get the results in 15 minutes! Use that to fly.
Going to Sweden is even easier! Just need your vaccination records and good to go!
I think the hardest part is just keeping up to date on everything to make sure the rules still are what they were the last time you looked. So if you are travelling, make sure you always check out the official government regulations and necessities for travel. Blog posts like this can get out of date sooner than you realize!
Stay safe and stay happy <3
