Travelers ready for a remote island holiday can add Seychelles to their 2021 wish list. But should they? The answer is deeply personal and complicated.

Days ago, Seychelles was accepting visitors with proof of vaccine. A noble and enticing safety measure for vaccinated would-be travelers looking for cautious destinations.

Now, the country has taken a sudden departure from that safety measure to accept all travelers except South Africans, regardless of vaccinated status. Why?

As per the STB News Bureau:

“The Seychelles, an Indian Ocean island destination, has announced that it will be welcoming visitors from across the globe, irrespective of their vaccination status, as from March 25, 2021. Visitors from South Africa will still not be permitted to enter Seychelles for the time being until further review.”

What at first glance appears a backtrack in policy, rather serves as recognition of the country’s vaccination progress.

According to David DiGregorio, the Managing Director at CornerSun Destination, a marketing agency specializing in promoting national tourism boards in the USA including Seychelles, the country “has done an outstanding job controlling the COVID-19 outbreak within its borders and putting in place safety measures to allow visitors to return safely.”

Americans consumed with their own vaccination rollout, likely missed good news elsewhere in the world, including in this small island nation off the east coast of Africa.

According to DiGregio, Seychelles started vaccinating its population in January with 100,000 doses of the Oxford Astra-Zeneca vaccine donated by India and 50,000 doses of China’s Sinopharm vaccine donated by the United Arab Emirates.

“The country’s fast and aggressive roll-out of vaccines has kept them at the top of the global lists of vaccine distribution and on track to become one of the first countries on earth to reach herd immunity status which should happen later this month.”

The announcement to open up to all travelers came on March 4th, 2021 from the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Tourism, Sylvestre Radegonde in a press briefing given in the Seychelles Tourism Board (STB) conference room.

Here’s a breakdown of the new guidelines:

1. Visitors will now only be required to present a negative PCR test taken 72 hours prior to departure.
2. There will be no quarantine requirement nor restriction on movement upon entry into Seychelles.
3. Additionally, the minimum stay in establishments upon arrival will no longer be applicable.
4. However, visitors will still be required to adhere to other public health measures put in place in view of the pandemic these will include wearing of face masks, social distancing, regular sanitisation or washing of hands.
5. The new measures also give visitors access to all communal area within the hotel premises inclusive of bars, swimming pools, spas and Kid’s clubs.

The economy of Seychelles is based primarily on tourism. Clearly this decision echoes an economic position which leadership hopes will prove backed by science.

Radegonde explained further: “The government has done everything in its power to make sure that the population is protected. We have now arrived at the point where opening our borders further is the next step to allow for our economic recovery. The measures being announced reflect broadly the recommendation of our tourism partners and have been done in full consultation with and the endorsement of our health authorities” he said.

Of course, travel requirements may change. As per their own warning, the Seychelles will continuously review their new entry measures “to ensure that at all times the health and safety of the visitors and the local population are not compromised.”

Why would Americans want to consider such a long-haul trek?

“Americans have long “Oo’d” and “Ahh’d” at mention of Seychelles but for many it remained a bucket-list destination for a later day. Now, as the world begins to re-open, Seychelles is extremely well positioned thanks to their proactive safety measures, success in administering vaccinations, nature based activities, and naturally social distanced islands. After a year of no-travel, Americans deserve an extra special trip, and there’s never been a better time to bump Seychelles up to the top of the bucket-list” says DiGregorio.

DiGregorio outlines a few travel options from the US including via Europe, Asia and Africa.

“The most efficient routes are through the Middle East making use of the Emirates and Qatar Airways route networks. From either Dubai or Doha you can reach Seychelles in under five hours. For those combining Seychelles with mainland Africa, Kenya Airways flies to Nairobi in about three hours” he explains.

Traditionally, America hasn’t comprised a significant share of Seychelles tourism, sending around 10,870 people in 2019. Before COVID-19, the US was a growing market, increasing 10% from 2018 to 2019 with “high expectations for the future” he says.

However, most countries court American tourists because they “tend to stay longer, and spend more money than their European counterparts” says DiGregorio.

Of course, the question of can you go begets the question of should you go, one that’s more easily answered in the coming months if you’ve been vaccinated than not.

Track details and changes on the updated travel advisory on www.tourism.gov.sc.