Canadian fliers confused after Portugal drops Canada from travel list

Shelley Blower went to the airport with a backup plan.

If she and her husband Jamie couldn't fly directly from Toronto to Lisbon, Portugal, where they planned to meet up with friends for two weeks, they'd grab a plane all the way to Madrid, Spain, where they'd rent a car and drive back to Portugal across the land border.

Canadians travelling to Portugal are facing confusion and cancellations after the latter country quietly removed Canada from its list of approved countries for non-essential travel on February 8.

The move follows a Jan. 17 recommendation by the European Union to reinstate travel restrictions on Argentina, Australia and Canada amid increasing COVID-19 infections. The EU Council's recommendations are not legally binding - it's up to individual countries to decide - but Canadian travellers can't seem to get a straight answer about what Portugal's new rules are.

While some say they've had to cancel trips at the last minute because of the new restrictions, losing hundreds of dollars, others report travelling there anyway without a hitch.

Blower never got to Plan B. When she and Jamie got to the Toronto airport Wednesday, employees for airline TAP Portugal checked their vaccination certificates and COVID-19 test results and let them on their way, with no further questions. Their plane was almost full, she said.

Before her flight Wednesday, she had called the airline to see what was up.

So, one person would say, No, you can't come,' the next person would say, I don't know anything about it. We never heard anything.'

Yeah, so we just went for it."

Blower spoke to the Star via video chat Thursday from Lisbon, where she's spending a few days before heading to the Algarve, Portugal's sunny southern coastline.

The Canadian embassy in Lisbon said Thursday that Canadians are currently unable to travel to Portugal but directed the Star to Global Affairs Canada for an official comment.

Sabrina Williams, a spokesperson for Global Affairs, said Canadian officials are in contact with Portuguese counterparts as part of our concerted effort to work together to ease travel restrictions in due course according to health officials' guidelines."

The federal government has advised against non-essential travel outside the country since Dec. 15, 2021, due to the risk of the Omicron variant.

Williams did not clarify whether Portugal is allowing Canadians to come; she told the Star to contact the Portuguese government for more information. The nation's embassy in Ottawa directed the Star to the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which did not respond to emailed questions from the Star.

Portugal still allows non-essential travellers from the United States, where the COVID-19 incidence is nearly double what it is in Canada, and where just 64 per cent of the population is fully vaccinated compared to Canada's 82 per cent. Portugal is one of the most vaccinated countries in the world, with 90 per cent of its population fully immunized against COVID-19.

Canadians have been sharing frustrations and advice in the Facebook group Travel Portugal." Some travellers say they've been told by airlines or travel agents to reschedule or reroute. Others say they're in limbo" with trips planned in the coming weeks that they don't know if they'll be able to take.

(Air Transat and TAP are among airlines operating flights from Canada to Portugal; Transat said it's up to travellers to see what restrictions apply to them.)

While there weren't any reports in the Facebook group of people attempting to fly and getting turned away at the airport, some Canadians say it's not worth the risk.

Jim, who would not give his last name, travelled from his hometown of St. John's, Newfoundland last Friday to Toronto, where he planned to catch a flight to Lisbon the next day, beginning a two-month tour of Portugal.

But before he could board, he got wind of the new restrictions on Facebook. Worried he could get stuck there, he decided to cancel and head home.

I thought that if I got there and it turned out to be true, I'd be stuck in an airport with no ticket to nowhere and having to buy somehow a return ticket to Canada or somewhere else from the air side of Lisbon airport."

Now out the cost of a round-trip from St. John's to Toronto, Jim is rerouting his trip to France. He plans to spend a few days in Paris, and hopes to then head south to Portugal when allowed.

Canadians anticipate Portugal will change its rules soon. An official from the country's Toronto consulate told one traveller that the rules are reviewed every two weeks. A European Union official said the EU would be reviewing its travel recommendations next week.

Rachel Solomon, a member of the Travel Portugal group, hopes to be able to travel with her family to Portugal in mid-March. For her children, it's the first trip outside of North America, our first big trip ever as a family," she wrote.

If nothing changes, we will cancel our trip the next day and lose a bunch of money. So disappointed that this layer of stress has been added to something we have all been so excited for."

Lex Harvey is a Toronto-based newsletter producer for the Star and author of the First Up newsletter. Follow her on Twitter: @lexharvs