Here's How To Avoid Getting Caught Up In Changing COVID Restrictions While Travelling

One of the industries most affected by the pandemic has been the travel industry. And, with so many things changing as countries gear up to open up, keeping up with local COVID-19 travel restrictions can be confusing.

It seems like every day there's a new update to border measures, whether it be a new restriction being lifted or new rules regarding getting tested to board a flight.

Travel expert Griffin Ott spoke to Narcity about the best tools to use during this time when travel rules are constantly changing.

As the founder of the travel blog God Save The Points, Ott is the go-to guy for getting all the tips and tricks for saving money, air miles hacks and knowing the best resources for travelling with ease.

There are the three primary resources Ott recommends turning to when trying to find the most up-to-date information on travel restrictions for the specific country you're trying to fly to.

One of the most basic and practical resources is none other than Google Flights, says Ott.

"If you're using Google Flights or, or even if you just Google flights to, let's say, the Netherlands, it'll show you the current travel restrictions. You don't even have to search restrictions," explained Ott.

The Google travel page will direct you straight to the government website page of the country you are trying to travel to, which shows the latest updates on their travel restrictions, so you don't have to hassle looking for it.

Google will even email you if the travel restrictions change, so there are no surprises when you're boarding your flight.

"There's a little thing where you can toggle an update and it'll just email you if restrictions change," he added.

According to Ott, another great resource to stay on top of changing travel restrictions is IATA, which he referred to as the "international airlines Mafia" because all airlines work closely with them.

IATA has a tool called the IATA Travel Center, which breaks down all travel-related information you need to know when it comes to your destination, from restrictions to visa requirements.

Ott told us that it's "pretty much what airlines use to check their restrictions as you're boarding flights."

So IATA is an excellent place to go to when you want to make sure you have a full-proof breakdown of all the information you need to travel to your desired destination.

Lastly, and this is Ott's personal favourite resource, there's Sherpa.

The website is super easy to navigate and it also does a stellar job of giving the most up-to-date information on travel restrictions.

Sherpa can quickly and efficiently generate all the information you need before you board your flight with little to no fuss.

Ott explained that on Sherpa, "you can search by your vaccination status, or by the restriction statuses, and they lay it out, I would say in the most digestible way."

"It's pretty much what I use for everything," he added.

So there you have it; the three best resources to turn to when researching travel restrictions before you travel so you face no hiccups while travelling.

This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.