The Covid-19 pandemic has persisted since March of last year and has yet to end. However, people’s patience with the virus has ended long ago. Many people hope and plan to travel as soon as possible because of the travel restrictions that have been implemented for over a year. 

On Monday, Europe announced that Americans will be allowed to travel to Europe this summer. The European Union has not allowed international tourists in Europe since the beginning of the virus outbreak. As of right now, the plan is for only fully vaccinated Americans to be able to tour countries in Europe. 

Permitting travel within Europe has led to controversy on whether this is a reasonable or rushed decision. Many worry that Covid-19 cases will surge again, while others believe that it is time to return to the pre-pandemic lifestyle. 

An anonymous Pascack Hills sophomore believes that “it’s not an entirely bad idea if precautions are taken, like getting Covid-19 tests before boarding the plane, having a mandatory quarantine and/or Covid-19 test after reaching Europe, and vice versa when traveling back. It’s also not bad if people are being socially distant with masks.”

Hills freshman Emily McDowell agreed that traveling is acceptable if safety precautions are taken: “In my opinion, if people follow the safety guidelines and do their quarantine when they get back and get tested, then I do not think it is a problem to travel internationally.”

When it comes to traveling this summer, freshman Leila Murillo thinks “in these current times it’s acceptable to travel internationally, as long as it is done responsibly. This could mean vaccination, a negative Covid-19 test result, and following country-specific quarantine guidelines.”

It is important and beneficial if those who travel to Europe take the most safety precautions, including quarantining and testing negative before, during, and after the trip. However, even with these safety measures, some are skeptical about Americans traveling outside of the United States. 

“I am against Americans traveling to Europe because I feel that we made a lot of progress with Covid-19, and allowing the travel will just bring us back to high cases and a new outbreak can occur,” said freshman Libby Wikfors. “We should make sure everyone is safe, the vaccine is distributed, and then wait a few months to make sure no more [strains] of the virus pop up in any countries before allowing people to travel. I would rather wait a few more months than do it too early and have to relive another pandemic.”

Traveling during the pandemic has its disadvantages and risks. Although there are these possible harms, traveling is beneficial to people’s mental health and knowledge of the world. Having gone a year without visiting other countries, many Hills students are ready to explore the world again and go on enjoyable trips. 

Junior Katy Zeidwig explained, “[International traveling] helps me, as well as most travelers, recover and relax from the anxiety of an abundant workload at school, as well as the dullness of repeating the same day over and over again. International traveling encourages society to escape their sanctuary and acquire cultural eloquence. Students also attain maturity and independence from international traveling which conditions them to be stronger people.”

There are harms and benefits when it comes to traveling internationally during this time. If those who travel take safety precautions and are fully vaccinated, then it is not much of a risk for them to start traveling out of the country again. However, no matter how many safety precautions are taken, there is still the possibility of someone catching Covid-19 and spreading it. Despite these many possibilities and opinions, there are changes in the safety guidelines that make it clear that the United States is steadily returning to a normal lifestyle.