Government will eliminate from July 1 requirement of safe conduct to enter the Galapagos Islands

The test requirement is maintained for travelers who have not received full doses.

In an attempt to reactivate the tourist activity of Galapagos, the Government of Ecuador will modify the requirements to enter the islands from July 1.

One of the changes is related to the elimination of the safe -conduct that visitors are requested to enter the islands and was managed by a tourist operator or a accommodation regulated by the Ministry of Tourism.

For access you must present the Traffic Control Card issued by the Galapagos Governing Council.

Travelers who already have the complete doses of the COVID-19 vaccine will not need to present a negative result of an RT-PCR or antigen test. But to travel they must present the vaccination card or its equivalent, with the complete scheme, as appropriate, which must be in force at least fourteen days before the flight.

The test requirement is maintained for travelers who have not received full doses. The tests must be maximum 72 hours before the trip counting from the sample.

The children under 2 are exempt from presenting these tests, according to the emergency operations committee. This, however, leaves doubts, because the evidence is currently requested under 18 years of age.

For every traveler whose point of origin is Brazil, must present a negative RT-PCR test or negative antigen test held up to 72 hours before arrival in Ecuador.

Although this test is negative, when entering Ecuador, you must make ten days of isolation at your home or anywhere for free choice and at the cost of the traveler.

The arrival of tourists to the islands marches slowly and is still distant from the levels of before the pandemic. Galapagos arrived 15,585 tourists in the first quarter of 2021, 73.12% less than in the same period of 2020.

In the islands there is the expectation that after the vaccination of the population, the arrival of tourists improve in the second semester. And this hope is also paid by the fact that the United States improved the level of risk for Ecuador, passing it from level 4 to 3.

Within level 4, the United States recommended to its travelers not to displace the Ecuadorian territory due to the current conditions of pandemic and security. Level 3 implies reconsidering the trip to the country. At South America only Ecuador, Peru and Guyana are at level 3, the rest of the countries continue with level 4.