老澳门六合彩开奖记录

In the US, children ages 5 to 11 are now eligible to receive Pfizer鈥檚 COVID-19 vaccine, and across the country, the rollout is in full swing.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) its recommendation on November 2, expanding eligibility to some 28 million kids and paving the way for lower-risk family vacations to return鈥攋ust in time for the winter holiday season. Here鈥檚 what the news could mean for your travel plans.

How will this affect travel?

For both and travel, the CDC suggests delaying until you鈥檙e fully vaccinated, meaning it鈥檚 been a minimum of two weeks since you received your second dose. As children need to get their second shot three weeks after their first, Thanksgiving will come too soon for those unwilling to travel without full vaccination, but by December, plenty of fully vaccinated families could be hitting the road.

Multiple travel agents they expect to see an increase in family travel, especially by plane, as more kids become vaccinated, though they emphasized change wouldn鈥檛 happen overnight. 鈥淐ertainly the vaccine has opened up the door for families to travel again, but it will very much subjective and based on personal comfort鈥攊t鈥檚 not an automatic 鈥榚veryone鈥檚 good to go鈥,鈥 Family Travel Association founder Rainer Jenss told Skift. 鈥淭here is this built in hesitancy and caution that doesn鈥檛 just suddenly go away.鈥

Boy and girl in the back seat of a car using a tablet and smartphone.
Travel agents predict that families will stay fairly local this holiday season 漏 Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock

鈥淭he approval comes too close to winter break, knowing that people are only considered fully vaccinated two weeks after their second dose,鈥 added Jennifer Hardy of Cruise Planners. 鈥淚 do foresee more local family gatherings, but when it comes to international travel, cruises, and other destination-focused vacations, parents are more cautious and want to wait it out.鈥

And for good reason. Like adults, kids can suffer long-term effects and spread the virus to others, though they don鈥檛 usually get as severely sick. But it does happen: as of October 26, in the US鈥檚 5-to-11 age bracket, there were more than 8,300 hospitalizations (a third involving the ICU) and 94 deaths due to COVID-19, per .

Still, just knowing the shot offers some measure of protection may put parents more at ease, whether or not it provides full immunity by the time they travel.

A mother with two kids overlooking a scenic mountain vista, seen from the back
Limiting activities in crowded places is important for those too young to be vaccinated 漏 Nadezhda1906 / Getty Images

What about traveling with kids under 5 years old?

For families with kids too young to get vaccinated, especially those too young to mask up, certain precautions may keep everyone safer, including taking COVID-19 tests and quarantining before visiting at-risk relatives. 鈥淔or children who are too young to be vaccinated, I would recommend self-quarantining if they are going to be in contact with anyone else unvaccinated, elderly, or with chronic health issues or immune suppression,鈥 pediatrician Dr. Vijay Prasad told . 鈥淧arents need to make a decision based on their risk profile.鈥

鈥淭he key recommendation would be to ensure that everyone who's eligible that will be around the children is vaccinated,鈥 , a pediatric infectious disease physician at Duke University, tells 老澳门六合彩开奖记录. For those who can鈥檛 be vaccinated, hand-washing and limiting activities in crowded places where it's hard to know everyone鈥檚 vaccination status become much more important. 鈥淭here really just have to be behavioral mitigation practices as compared to masking and vaccination if you're too young to be eligible for either,鈥 she adds.

Read more: What to know about traveling with unvaccinated kids

Families with young children should also consider their intended destination in more detail than they might鈥檝e done pre-COVID. 鈥淭he goal would be to reach a point where it shouldn't matter where you go鈥攕afety should be embedded in that location,鈥 Kalu says. 鈥淏ut I think for now鈥t鈥檚 just doing a little bit more homework in the beginning, looking past just the destination, the cost and the logistics of getting there to some additional things regarding vaccination practices in that area, community spread of COVID-19 and also, what you might need to do to keep your child safe.鈥

Black and white children playing together at the Half Moon Resort beach in Montego Bay, Jamaica
Make sure your family's other vaccines are up to date too 漏 Alison Wright / Getty Images


And then there are the more commonplace risks to consider. 鈥淎s a pediatrician, I'm still concerned about other vaccine-preventable infections, particularly those that can be picked up while traveling,鈥 says Kalu, who suggests checking the CDC website for your destination and making sure your children鈥檚 other vaccines鈥攁nd yours鈥攁re up to date.

鈥淲e focused a lot on COVID in the last year and a half or so, but influenza is another virus that causes a lot of harm if you have a child that gets it,鈥 she says, adding that before you travel, particularly in the winter, your family should get the flu shot and stock up on any medications your pediatrician recommends.

Do kids need to be vaccinated to enter the US?

Given the unavailability of adolescent vaccines around the world, the US government is not requiring visitors under the age of 18 to be vaccinated at this time, nor will they have to self-quarantine upon arrival鈥攖hough , those determinations will be periodically reevaluated. For now, kids will have to be tested three to five days after arrival and self-isolate if the result is positive, or if they develop COVID-19 symptoms.

For more information on COVID-19 and travel, check out 老澳门六合彩开奖记录's Health Hub.

You may also like:
How do you choose travel insurance that covers COVID-19?
What is a vaccine passport and do I need one to travel?
9 expert tips for a safe road trip during the pandemic
Everything you need to know about PCR tests for travel

Explore related stories

St John's Co Cathedral in Valletta, Malta..Photo: Matthew Mirabelli
LP Owned,  Altar,  Architecture,  Building,  Church,  Indoors,  Person,  Prayer
The interior of St John鈥檚 Co-Cathedral, Valetta, Malta - Best in Travel 2023 - Shot October 2022

Art and Culture

Visiting Malta? Here鈥檚 what to know, how to drive, where to eat and more

Sep 2, 2024 鈥 6 min read