dpnce

1 hour ago, Kay & Evan said:

Hello everyone,

 

I have been in the same boat as everyone and desperate to find a way to get to my SO before my K1 expires.

I have been very hesitant to take the Mexico route because of the money needed for this type of trip and also the uncertainty it brings.

 

I have been following other options and today I fount another possible route that I am 95% sure it is valid (I have read all online information, contacted CBP, embasies and airports and either have got confirmation or am waiting for their response, so will update as soon as I have all the responses).

 

So:

Serbia has no entry restrictions

Serbia is not part of Schengen 

AirSerbia introduced DIRECT flights from Belgrade to New York every Wednesday and Saturday starting June 6th

https://www.airserbia.com/en/information/flights/relaunched-services-and-regular-flight-schedule/belgrade

 

Has anyone checked this route? 

In my case (leavig from Athens Greece) seems much cheaper and less risky

 

Good luck everyone!

Thank you for sharing! From the latest update of the US Embassy in Serbia, "all COVID-19 related entry restrictions are lifted for both Serbian and foreign citizens. It is no longer necessary to have a negative PCR test or special permit to enter Serbia. The government of Serbia also abolished self-isolation requirements upon entry."  https://rs.usembassy.gov/serbia-covid-19-information/

Seems like a good option to fly to the US, especially with AirSerbia (and the plane ticket from Belgrade is not expensive). Personally I will be flying to Mexico in a few days but if anything goes wrong, this could be a back-up plan. 

Would you mind keeping us updated if you choose this route? Good luck and best wishes! 

7 hours ago, Orangesapples said:

 Nope, no stamp if you're an EU citizen. They will check your ID but they won't stamp it or scan it. 

You're right! One can always request a border officer to have a stamp affixed to their passport but there's the risk they say no. 

3 minutes ago, Ja3germeister said:

Here is my experience so far. Will keep updating.

 

Checked my luggage in at Amsterdam airport. Lady at check-in looked up online to see if there are any travel restrictions on Mexico. She said no, took my luggage and wished me a pleasant flight. Then at the passport check the guy asked why I'm going to Mexico, I responded with that I'm self-isolating for 14 days and he too wished me a pleasant flight. 

 

Boarding starts in 30 minutes. Will let you guys know in 13 hours whether I made it or not

Safe travels!!! You're almost there! 

5 minutes ago, Lskifghj said:

Don’t give up! Try again! 

Agreed. Don't give up and try again through London (if possible for you!)!

36 minutes ago, Anna Pg said:

but if you are coming from another EU country they won't stamp your passport.. so I really don't know how to prove my stay beside the booking of an hotel or similar..
 

Hello! 

The whole point of the Schengen Area is the freedom of movement between Shengen countries and this is why as EU citizens, we do not get our passports stamped when entering another Schengen country. Despite being a EU country, Croatia is not (yet) part of the Schengen Area so I assume you will have a stamp in your passport once at the Croatian border check point.

Regarding the flights to the US from Coatia with transit in Turkey, I don't know if you have seen it already but it was also discussed in another thread: 

(I've been considering going to Croatia as well - and I also see that we are going to the same city in the US -, but I ended up choosing Mexico!)

1 minute ago, RD7712 said:

My fiancee and her son are leaving tomorrow and I leave also tomorrow. I have sometimes felt sick to my stomach in worries these last few days. After cheering everyone else on now I am facing the reality of we going into situations we have no control over, but we are going through. 

I am sending lots of good vibes to you and all of the VJ members travelling this week! You can do it. 

Also, thank you for this thread. It has been very helpful and insightful thanks to everyone who shared their experience and/or supportiveness! 

15 minutes ago, RD7712 said:

This is the latest tracking of the formation of a tropical storm moving into the Gulf of Mexico this weekend. 

 

Your fiancée's flight is in 2 days! Have you heard anything from the airline company? 

1 hour ago, Ja3germeister said:

1. I believe @Smokey Bear did

 

2. No one knows for sure. It could happen, it could not happen. The way I see it is they have been focusing on land borders all this time, and air travel has never been affected. Also, Mexico wants to revive their tourism industry. First for domestic tourists and then for American tourists. That gives me hope they won't expand the ban to air travel.

I second this! Also, all eyes are (unfortunately) on the protests all over the US right now. 

9 minutes ago, cadr said:

@sl1pstream do you have any recommendations for shipping? The quotes I've found so far have been more expensive than flying (I have large 4 bags) but this would be a much more convenient option if I could find a good service!

Please allow me to step in, I am using sendmybag.com to ship 2 large suitcases and it costs me around 300 bucks for the 2 of them (up to 30 kilos each). Shipping takes around 3-4 working days - they use DHL - and it’s a door-to-door delivery service  

I believe there are some posts/threads in the forum where people talk about their sendmybag experience

1 minute ago, ek1357 said:

Well that makes me feel a lot more confident that others are going on similar dates! I will be booking my flight tomorrow if we decide to go ahead with Mexico!

Where are you flying to in the US? 

Definitely  My POE will be Miami, how about you? 

9 hours ago, ek1357 said:

Hi 

 

I have been quietly following this thread since it started and reading everyone’s thoughts and plans. Our visa is expiring on 27 June so I’m now at that desperate point of now or god-knows-when to get into the US. 
Our situation is a little different as I am a US citizen and live with my fiancé in the U.K. so we will be travelling together to Mexico and together into the US. 

We would both be quitting secure jobs in England to make it to the states. Is that totally crazy?

We would be looking to fly LHR-AMS-MEX on 8 June is anyone looking at the same week? 
Is the risk of us being turned away at the airport or POE high?!

My flight is on June 8, CDG (Paris)-AMS-MEX. If you decide to go ahead with the booking, we will probably be on the same flight to Mexico! 

1 hour ago, Lskifghj said:

I mean dont say tourism if it is not. Be honest and don’t be too vague. Tell them about your true intentions to be reunited with family and that you’re in Mexico to self isolate. If you say all this but also say tourism they might misunderstand that it is tourism (language barrier). Say family reasons because that is what it really is. You’re not in Mexico for fun, the real reason is your fiancé. 

Thank you so much, you are always super helpful and I had to tell you that I really appreciate it. 

46 minutes ago, Smokey Bear said:

I was asked simple questions at luggage drop off and was told there are no resrictions in Mexico itself.

Would you mind sharing the "simple questions" you were asked? 

So now it appears that saying one is going to stay with friends and family is better than self-quarantining? So confusing. 

In any case, thanks a lot for sharing and good luck for the rest of your journey! 

38 minutes ago, Sparkle Sparkle said:

Well as that option is closed others are opening up....you can still travel through Cyprus https://www.france24.com/en/20200522-cyprus-ends-passenger-flights-ban-from-june-9-with-conditions

Most of the flights still stop over in Turkey but I can imagine 14 days in Cyprus with very affordable hotels.

@thisguyflies must have been very tough for you. 

  @ashp65 your visa is still valid till September alot can happen before then.

 

One might be able to travel to Cyprus as soon as they reopen but the issue would be flying from there without transiting through the Schengen area or UK, when it will be the time to travel to the US.

Also and at the moment, Turkish Airlines - most flights via Turkey are operated by them - does not plan to resume travels to the US  https://www.trtworld.com/turkey/turkish-airlines-plans-to-resume-limited-number-of-flights-in-june-36064 via @zrdn2019

11 minutes ago, thisguyflies said:

UPDATE

 

I spoke with KLM on the phone like they recommended I should do when I got rejected at check in (their hold music is awful, was on hold for about 40 min). They informed me that I was put down as a "no show" and no notes were made on my booking despite the fact that I specifically asking if they could do that, which they said they did....sooooo yeah nice one KLM....

 

I traveled back to the airport just now to see if anyone could help me. After dodging a disgusting guy spitting next to my car (yes, seriously), I managed to speak with somebody at a check in desk (not KLM).

 

After talking with them about my situation, I'm going back again tomorrow morning to see if I can:

1: Get them to fix my booking status from today to give me a chance for a refund

2: Get confirmation from them that I can fly to mexico...go Giga-Karen mode and speak to Mr KLM himself if I must.

3: Try to get them to change my booking to the next flight to Mexico (this Saturday).

 

To anyone reading my posts who have had their nerves skyrocket; here is my advice unto you if you're worried:

 

PACK LIGHT

Make sure you meet KLM's 12kg allowance and size restrictions (or whatever your airline is). Don't have any checked bags.

 

CHECK IN ONLINE, PRINT OUT YOUR BOARDING CARD

This was my big mistake...I believe I could have bypassed talking to the check in people and gone straight through security, as I had my boarding card printed already. I would have definitely been questioned at the gate or elsewhere, but I think it's a risk worth taking to avoid the uninformed check in staff.  It's a little risky, but you'll be closer to your goal.

 

PRINT OUT AND FILL OUT THE HEALTH FORM

Download it here print out for each flight you're taking if connecting. This is for KLM only, but you might be able to find something similar for other airlines.

 

IF THEY TELL YOU THAT YOU CAN'T FLY....JUST REMEMBER KLM (KAREN LIVES MATTER) AND ASK TO SPEAK TO THE MANAGER

No guarantees, but don't accept what they say. If they've already spoken to them on the phone, demand to speak to the manager in person.

 

GATHER ALL THE EVIDENCE AND DOCUMENTATION YOU CAN PROVING THAT YOU CAN TRAVEL

Didn't help me out much, but it's worth having.

 

Good luck

 

 

Thank you so much for the details! Wishing you the best of luck for tomorrow, can you please keep us posted?

One question: May I ask you why one must not travel with any checked bag? 

34 minutes ago, sl1pstream said:

I don't think I'm being unrealistic. Hope is fine, but I'm not not going to point out the horrible reality in which we currently live. If I'm right I don't really lose anything, if I am wrong it's good news and everyone's happy. If you're too hopeful and things don't go well, you'll still end up disappointed and sad. Clearly my view is the more positive one in the long run.
 

Besides, the reason he ended up restricting travel from the entire Schengen area is because travel between Schengen countries was super easy. I really can't see him opening up countries based on local numbers if the local numbers didn't really matter when it came to putting the ban in place.

I understand what you meant. Each and everyone one of us have different ways of addressing a situation/an issue e.g. some would have a "positive mind" (with the risk of being disillusioned) towards it, while others would work with a "negative mind" to avoid being disappointed and sad. This is just how different personalities can be so we're good!  

I believe both local numbers and the freedom of movement between Schengen States mattered, at least from my personal understanding of these sentences in the Proclamation: "As of March 11, 2020, the number of cases in the 26 Schengen Area countries is 17,442, with 711 deaths, and shows high continuous growth in infection rates.  In total, as of March 9, 2020, the Schengen Area has exported 201 COVID-19 cases to 53 countries.  Moreover, the free flow of people between the Schengen Area countries makes the task of managing the spread of the virus difficult." In any case, we shall see! 

6 minutes ago, WillSea said:

Does anyone know if Brazilians are allowed entry into Mexico?  

 

My fiance just got her flight cancelled because of the recent travel ban put on Brazil, so we are thinking about going through Mexico as well.

 

Thanks!
Will

Given there's also a travel ban over the Schengen area and some of us (EU nationals) managed to enter Mexico, I would assume they would let Brazilians as well, provided they follow the "rules" mentioned earlier in this thread. This is just IMHO, I will let others share their thoughts! 

So apparently Trump is open to lift the travel ban soon but no one knows when. I do not want to give any false hope to anyone and maybe this is just speculation but just wanted to share! 

"Asked during a White House press conference in the Rose Garden on Tuesday whether the U.S. was considering lifting travel restrictions on European countries over the coming weeks, Trump did not shut down the possibility. Noting that the U.S. had just imposed new restrictions on travelers who have been to Brazil, which has been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak, Trump said: "We'll be doing certain announcements on other countries including Europe, as we move along."

"And where they're making progress, we'll start to open it up, but only when they're making progress. They're making some good progress," he said."

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/05/26/donald-trump-open-lifting-european-flight-ban-coronavirus-eases/

https://www.newsweek.com/trump-suggests-u-s-could-soon-lift-coronavirus-travel-ban-countries-that-are-making-progress-1506707

Link to the video where he actually says it : 

So I asked a friend who works for American Airlines at the Miami International Airport if they had recently let people enter from the Caribbean islands and she told me "they're letting people enter, but if you're not a national of an island, they're not letting people go on." I will let you know when my fiancé would have called the CBP to have a more "official" info! 

45 minutes ago, Robin Redemsky said:

I just called the Mexican Embassy in Washington DC and I was told unless you have to go to Mexico for a medical emergency (citizens only) or you’re there for work, you’re not considered essential and therefore they won’t let you in. I asked about certain regions opening up and she said that’s only for certain travelers, not European ones. I know someone here was able to get to the US thru Mexico, but it sounds like it’s not possible to go to Mexico right now.

If this helps, hereinbelow you will find some successful entries by air into Mexico, along with some advice to prepare the travel: 

On 5/6/2020 at 5:11 PM, Ela S. said:

So I’m going to tell how the whole check-in, boarding and Immigration went. When I arrived to the KLM check-in desks in Madrid airport the lady asked me what I was going to do in Mexico City. I said I was going to visit a friend (which is true I guess because I’m staying with a family friend) and she said I can’t travel because that’s a “leisure” trip. I told her the borders in Mexico were open to tourism and she didn’t believe me and she kept saying “Well that could change in a day or even hours”. When I explained to her that I was traveling to the US from Mexico City she had me show her my K1 visa and the confirmation email for my flight to the US. She had me waiting about 20 minutes while she asked like 5 colleagues and researched it online because she clearly was clueless about the borders in Mexico (great professionalism). Finally after 20 minutes of literally thinking I was going to have to Uber back home she came back and told me I can go and gave me my boarding pass. I had to fill in a health questionnaire as well during check-in. When it was time to board there was again people asking everyone what they were doing in Mexico. This man didn’t want to let me board because (AGAIN) he was saying Mexico isn’t open for tourism. I then told him I wasn’t going for tourism and showed him my K1 visa on my passport and that I was just flying to the US from Mexico. I had to show him my flight to the US for him to let me board. When I finally sat on the plane I truly couldn’t believe it ahahah. When I landed in Amsterdam for my layover that was a breeze compared to Madrid. I got no questions asked during passport control besides “Where are you headed?”. Once I landed in Mexico City that was a whole different story. I waited in line for Immigration and I got sent for a secondary check. I told them what I was going to do this trip and it seemed like they knew about the “2 week” quarantine for europeans because I was actually not the only one coming for that purpose in my flight. He asked me if I intended to adjust status once I got to the US with my visa and I said “Uuhh.. I guess? but months later”. After all these questions I got sent into a room full of what seemed to be all the foreigners that were in my flight... We were mostly all from Europe. And I met this other Irish girl and British guy who were doing exactly like me. They both had work visas and were just traveling to Mexico to quarantine. We weren’t allowed to have our phones out and they made us fill a really long form about what we were going to do in Mexico and who we were staying with and what activities we were planning on doing. People from that room were getting called into an even smaller room for a short interview. And this wasn’t based on who arrived into the room first... This was based on how complex your case was... So I was freaking out a little because I was called in about 2 hours later. Once I went in I got told to sit down and this lady came and started asking me (again) what I was going to do here in Mexico so I explained to her that I was just staying at a friends house to quarantine and be able to fly to the US. I also told her my fiancé was coming on the 18th. She looked at my visa and asked me to show her my flight to the US. She then told me I could go back to the waiting room. About 5 minutes later I got called and I left the waiting room back into the immigration desk outside and a man stamped my passport and told me “Welcome to Mexico” and I honestly couldn’t believe it because I saw quite a few people getting refused entry. After that I went to get my baggage and left without any other problem. This wasn’t a pleasant experience at all especially when you’ve been awake for 24h and all that is going through your head is “Am I gonna have to sleep at the airport until I can get a flight back home?”. I’m just glad this is all over. Still got the hardest part though... which is entering the US. But after going through all this I’m not even scared anymore...

 

Note that the two other people who had work visas to enter the US were still in the waiting room when I left (and they actually arrived earlier than I did). I really hope they got into Mexico without a problem... I don’t know if having a K1 visa worked in my favor or not. That I will never know. But there shouldn’t be a difference hopefully.

On 5/21/2020 at 3:16 AM, LaraAndEric said:

Congrats 🎉 That’s very good news  I’m in Mexico and I still got 10 days left

On 5/22/2020 at 5:30 AM, LaraAndEric said:

It wasn’t difficult, the only thing you should prepare in advance is the ticket from Mexico to the US. In Amsterdam the lady from the check in counter asked me to show it to her, and then in México they asked me again at the customs. So be sure to buy your ticket in advance  

On 5/22/2020 at 4:14 PM, ohohoho said:

We flew in to Mexico City yesterday via Amsterdam. Nobody asked us anything at all, only in Mexico immigration they ask for the purpose of your visit. 
 

The flight was a terrible experience with all their corona restrictions and zero service, be prepared that for 11 hours (or more if connecting flight like we had) you get no food and limited drinks. On the short connecting flight you get a sandwich consisting of a dry bread with onion spread and a slice of cheese and a 86 ml cup of water. I had to fight with them to get another water for me and my son, he was thirsty and in the airport everything was closed and vending machine not working. I later asked if this will be the same on the long flight and the KLM staff told me they didn’t know so maybe I should buy drinks at the airport shops just to be safe that we have something. Thank god we did that. On the website they advise you to bring an empty water bottle and fill it after security, I strongly advise that now too! Amsterdam airport has food outlets closed except for few kiosks where you can buy some soft drinks and packaged sandwiches (like tank station kind of), that’s it, but shops like Hermes, jewellery, duty free and tulips are open. Upon boarding, you will find a plastic bag with two tangerines, two small cans of Diet Coke, two small bottles of water and some crackers, cookies and other junk. This is for the whole flight. You can get some more drinks from the galley if you want, but no service. Then after 5.5 hours they serve the whole airplane the same terrible pasta with a fanfare that they are giving you a hot meal. Hardly edible, but we were starving so ate at least some of it. Meanwhile you see flight attendants eating their boxes of food with clearly much much better food, talking to each other without masks and talking to passengers... and of course, playing on iPads, watching movies in empty business class seats and chatting. I really don’t know what difference would it make to operate as normal, I find it a bit alibistic from their side and just an unfair cost cutting measure since the tickets are crazy expensive and the plane was full. For me and my toddler this was frankly the worst part that I was not able to feed him anything decent and without any chance to even buy anything. Upon arrival in Mexico City everything is closed too, so not much help and since we’re flying onwards today and decided to overnight at the airport Hilton and it doesn’t even have room service at night, only daytime. So we’ve been starving 24 hours, but oh well, we’re here... 

 

On 5/24/2020 at 4:31 PM, RD7712 said:

I would think going to visit family and friends could be considered a non-essential travel at this time. But if you show them your K1 visa and explain the visa is set to expire soon and you are going to quarantine for 14 days before entering the USA then it will be fine. As other members here already have experienced have your ticket to the USA handy to show as proof you are indeed travelling to the USA afterwards. Besides that on June 1st is when the country is trying to get back to somewhat normal level of business so the scrutiny should be minimized by officials. 

7 minutes ago, Lskifghj said:

But why would they show Turkey - US flights then?

I don't know, this is a question I would like to be able to answer but I cannot. It's like hotels in Mexico City that show up on Booking.com but that we cannot book unless for "business" reasons  😬

3 minutes ago, HRQX said:

Iran proclamation was in between China and Schengen Area proclamations

Forgot about that one, thank you for your input!

On 5/17/2020 at 5:24 PM, zrdn2019 said:

You saw a direct flight from Zagreb to Florida? 😮 On what airline?

 

Regarding Turkey, I don't know what the deal is. I see international flights posted for Turkish Airlines after May 28, but then I read that Turkey plans to re-start air travel to 19 countries, and the US is NOT one of those 19 countries. So I'm thoroughly confused.

https://www.trtworld.com/turkey/turkish-airlines-plans-to-resume-limited-number-of-flights-in-june-36064

5 hours ago, Lskifghj said:

I second this. However, I think I’ve seen flights Croatia - Turkey - US but double check again. 

There are some flights Croatia - Turkey - US on Google flights but as @zrdn2019 said, unfortunately the US is not part of the 19 countries where Turkey plans to re-start air travel  

8 minutes ago, Ela S. said:

Another couple traveling from Spain stayed in Mexico for 15 days and are traveling to the US today! I’ll keep you all posted. They‘re both entering with an EB-3 visa. Their POE will be Miami

Thank you Ela! My POE will be Miami so definitely closely following this.

2 hours ago, geowrian said:

My understanding is it covers "states", which effectively means countries here since territories of those countries were not explicitly excluded.

But this is just my understanding based on the wording of the EO provided - I do not have an official source to verify this (the FAM does not appear to be updated, nor have I seen DOS memos clarifying this) or actual examples of people having success or failure.

 

The issue is the proclamation states "For purposes of this proclamation, the Schengen Area comprises 26 European states: ...". This effectively defines what is meant by "Schengen Area" throughout the rest of the document, unless stated otherwise, regardless of any actual Schengen agreement.

 

Example:

Had the Proclamation said "For purposes of this proclamation, South America comprises of Brazil, Chile, and Venezuela.", it would not apply to - for example - Peru as it was not in that definition despite being part of South America.

• In a broadest sense and if you look at the context, the Schengen travel ban was the 2nd ban to be implemented after that of China. I would tend to say that the US knows - given the historical background - that the UK has overseas territories, and that Hong Kong and Macau are "Special Administrative Regions". In my personal and travel experience - which of course can be different from others - a few people would know the existence of the French Caribbean islands nor Reunion island, which is in the Indian Ocean. IMHO, they forgot to expressly exclude (French) overseas territories when they implemented the Schengen travel ban. Maybe because they thought they were part of the Schengen Area as well? Even some French people think that "DROM-COM" are part of the Schengen Area so I would not be surprised if this was the case. Also, the number of COVID-19 cases in the French overseas territories is way lower than in mainland France. E.g.: Today, there are 161 cases and 14 deaths in Guadeloupe, 459 cases and 1 death in Reunion island, and 197 cases and 14 deaths in Martinique as per https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries. 

• Read/Interpreted in its strict sense, and given the way other proclamations were written by expressly excluding overseas territories ("who were physically present within the United Kingdom, excluding overseas territories outside of Europe, or the Republic of Ireland" in the UK and Ireland Proclamation and "who were physically present within the People’s Republic of China, excluding the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau" in the China proclamation), I agree that (French) overseas territories fall under the ban. 

It does not make sense to use  the technical terms "Schengen Area" in the Proclamation given that they themselves refer to a specific Agreement, while the Agreement itself does not comprises (French) overseas territories. This is just IMHO. My fiancé told me he is going to call the CBP to check if they would allow someone entering from Guadeloupe/Martinique to clarify this point.