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Russians go out to get the vaccine
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In the past few months, Russians have begun to actively engage in vaccine tourism – they leave for the vaccination approved by the WHO.
None of the foreign vaccines have been registered in Russia. And the World Health Organization still does not recognize the local Sputnik. That is, people vaccinated with Sputnik or any other Russian vaccine are considered unvaccinated in the European Union and in countries where the Russian vaccine is not registered, with all the ensuing restrictions.
Thus, the Russians were trapped due to the lack of agreements between Russia and other countries on the mutual recognition of vaccines, as well as due to problems with the approval of Sputnik by the WHO.
Rescue from such a trap – travel abroad for vaccinations.
Vaccine tours
Russian tour operators are already organizing package vaccine tours. As a rule, these are two-four-day tours to Serbia, the cost of which starts from $ 500 and significantly exceeds the cost of longer tours to this country.
At least three Russian companies already sell vaccine tours. Most often, such tours, according to experts, come from Russians who are accustomed to traveling a lot or who are forced to travel abroad for work or family reasons.
Tour operators so far offer those wishing to be vaccinated in Europe only two directions – Serbia and Germany. Serbia has become the main direction of organized vaccine tourism for Russians: there are direct regular flights from Russia to this country; Russian tourists do not need a visa. To enter Serbia, a negative PCR test is sufficient, made no earlier than 48 hours before entry. Serbia vaccinates foreign citizens free of charge with Pfizer / BioNTech, Astra Zeneca and Sinopharm (a tourist can choose the vaccine himself).
Independent attempts
For independent Russian travelers wishing to be vaccinated with one of the EU-recognized vaccines, Croatia has become one of the most popular destinations. A foreign tourist can get vaccinated in this country free of charge and without an appointment. The country has a list of vaccination points where foreign tourists are vaccinated. To enter Croatia, Russians need a visa (Croatian or Schengen) and a PCR test or antigen test.
Also, foreign tourists can get vaccinated without an appointment at a number of points in Hungary and Italy.
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