Summer holidays are back on people's minds after two years of travel disruption.
Many people jetted off over the Easter break and others are looking ahead to the summer months for a break in the sun.
Most countries have opened up and are welcoming Irish tourists back after Covid lockdowns, but the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is reminding people that there are still risks involved.
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It has issued specific travel advice for more than 200 countries, which includes asking Irish citizens to "exercise a high degree of caution" in some popular holiday hotspots.
The DFA has four colour-coded security ratings, which it says are "a clear way for us to show you how safe or unsafe we believe a country may be to visit, and to help you to make informed decisions about overseas travel".
They are:
- Green for "normal precautions"
- Yellow for "high degree of caution"
- Orange for "avoid non-essential travel"
- Red for "do not travel"
Among the countries where Irish holidaymakers are being asked to "exercise a high degree of caution" are Spain, Portugal, Turkey, France, Italy, Greece, Germany, the United States and Great Britain.
The safety alert means: "Countries in this category have additional risks such as serious crime and/or terrorism, specific targeting of foreigners, disease or extreme weather events. Ensure that you are well informed and are aware of the risks before departure, and closely follow the advice and instructions of local authorities. You should be vigilant and take extra care planning your trip.
"Many Irish people safely visit countries with this rating each year, but we issue such a warning to draw your attention to clear risks which we have identified."
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The DFA has listed the following precautions Irish citizens travelling should take:
- Avoid protests and demonstrations.
- Stay alert at all times and take extra measures to protect your personal security.
- Consider leaving your itinerary and travel plans with family or friends so they know your approximate location at a given time.
- Register with us: dfa.ie/travel/citizens-registration/
- Purchase a comprehensive travel insurance policy which covers all your planned activities.
- Check our travel advice: dfa.ie/travel/travel-advice/
- Check the local media for information about possible new safety or security threats and follow the advice of local authorities.
- Be aware of scams targeting foreigners.
Meanwhile, anyone travelling in the EU is being reminded about changes to the validity of the EU Digital Covid Cert.
The DFA says: "Citizens should be aware that EU-Digital Covid Certificates based on a primary course of vaccination are only valid for intra-EU travel if no more than 270 days have passed since the final dose in the primary vaccine series. Vaccine certificates based on booster/additional doses are not time limited."
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