The EU recommends opening to Americans to rescue the summer

In a rush of hope that Europe has turned the page on its pandemic ordeal, the EU Friday urged its member countries to open their doors to American leisure travelers, after more than a year of tight restrictions and economic slump. Most countries are expected to open to Americans immediately — if they haven’t already — including Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece, among others. For the tourism powerhouses of Europe, especially, the ruling offered long-awaited relief that they could begin recouping their economic losses from the pandemic as summer weather arrives. “We have a lot of American guests and we actually stayed in touch with them over the pandemic,” said Richard Fischer, 37, a general manager at the Circus Hotel, in the heart of Berlin. “They are really looking forward to coming, and we are looking forward to having them!” A recent rise of cases in Europe involving coronavirus variants prompted some caution about the EU’s move, and calls for continued vigilance. But after an early struggle to secure vaccines for many Europeans, the improvements in vaccination and case counts that allow the opening are crucial signals that the European bloc can still deliver for its members in times of trouble — a significant moment of cohesion in the wake of Britain’s exit from the union.<br/>Friday’s decision was made by Europe’s economy ministers, who agreed to add the United States to a list of countries considered safe from an epidemiological point of view. That means that travelers from those countries should be free to enter the bloc even if they are not fully vaccinated, on the basis of a PCR test showing no active coronavirus infection. But the EU cannot compel member nations to open to American visitors. Each country is free to keep or impose more stringent restrictions, including obligations to quarantine upon arrival or to undergo a series of further tests.<br/>