Travelling together, safely
With tours beginning to run in a variety of destinations, your students’ health and well-being continues to be our top priority. We are taking the necessary steps to help keep EF groups as safe as possible, and our thoughtful approach to travel means you can once again explore the world with confidence.
We’re proud to have earned the World Travel & Tourism Council’s Safe Travels stamp—the world’s first-ever global safety and hygiene stamp for Travel & Tourism, designed specifically to address COVID-19 and similar outbreaks.
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Page last updated: October 14, 2022
We will continue to update this page as we monitor guidance from Public Health Canada and local and federal authorities worldwide. Please check back frequently for the most up-to-date information.
EF COVID Care Promise
Provided to all groups departing through Sept 30, 2023
If a traveller develops symptoms of COVID-19 while on tour, we will help to facilitate medical attention and testing for the traveller. If, ultimately, the traveller tests positive, our exclusive EF COVID Care Promise will cover the cost of hotel and meals during the isolation period, as well as support from an EF representative.
If a traveller is diagnosed with COVID-19 while on tour, EF will provide or arrange for the following, consistent with local requirements, at no additional expense to the traveller throughout the duration of any on-tour quarantine period:
- Lodging and meals
- EF representatives available to support the traveller and to coordinate with local authorities on their behalf where necessary
- Assistance connecting with local health care providers
- Translation services
- Communication between the traveller and the traveller’s family back home
- EF-arranged flights home, based on existing itinerary, for the traveller once cleared to return
- If the diagnosed traveller is a minor, flights for their parent or guardian to join them at the tour location
If a traveller or group is not diagnosed with, yet is required to quarantine on account of, COVID-19 while on tour, EF will provide or arrange for the following, consistent with local requirements, at no additional expense to the travellers throughout the duration of any on-tour quarantine period:
- Lodging and meals
- EF representatives available to support the traveller or group and to coordinate with local authorities on their behalf where necessary
- Assistance connecting with local health care providers
- Translation services
- Communication between the traveller or group and their family or families back home
- EF-arranged flights home for the traveller or group once cleared to return
COVID-19 Safe Traveller Information
In order to maintain as safe of an environment as possible, all travellers must review the COVID-19 Safe Traveller Information. You will have access to the most up to date document at 75 days prior to departure on your traveller secure site.
Pre-tour testing
For their safety, we strongly recommend that all travellers receive a negative COVID-19 test 24 hours prior to travel. Some destinations and suppliers on the tour itinerary may require that travellers receive and carry proof on tour of a negative COVID-19 test administered prior to travel. We will notify Group Leaders and Travellers in writing if any testing measures are necessary for their specific itinerary.
Vaccines
Some countries, suppliers and/or airlines may require proof of vaccination. Our offices around the world are continuing to monitor destination-specific information, and we will provide guidance on what may be required in order to travel closer to a group’s departure date, since regulations are changing so rapidly.
Your on-tour experience
We do everything we can to maintain the integrity of our tour experiences, and our travellers’ safety comes first. If we need to adjust an itinerary to, say, avoid a crowded location at a peak time or follow local health and safety guidance, we’re able to do so quickly and easily. Our on-the-ground presence in the areas where we travel means we’re continuously working with our local partners, such as special sites and restaurants, to provide as safe an experience as possible.
Global partnerships
We have strong, long-established relationships with some of the largest airline, hotel, and transportation companies, global governmental agencies, and health organizations. These partnerships, along with our leadership roles in major industry organizations, mean that we are actively shaping new worldwide health and safety standards.
Masks & hand sanitizer on tour
Masks must be worn if required by local regulations, including on coach busses and COVID-19 testing sites if required. We do ask that travellers bring their own face masks on tour, as well as their own personal hand sanitizers. However, Tour Directors will have a supply of disposable face masks and hand sanitizer available should someone in the group need them. In addition, hand sanitizer will be available in hotels and restaurants, and on your group’s motorcoach.
Hotels
We partner with hotels that practice enhanced safety measures such as frequent cleaning of common areas and thoroughly disinfecting rooms between guests.
Dedicated motorcoach
Your coach will be thoroughly cleaned daily, and high-touch areas will be wiped down throughout the day. Bus drivers will be trained by vetted suppliers in best practices to provide the safest possible environment.
Tour Director & local staff
All our local staff and your expert Tour Director will be ready to explain guidelines in the destinations you are travelling to. Your Tour Director and our Safety and Incident Response Team are trained on how to support travellers should any member of your group feel ill during your trip.
Returning home
Travellers must be familiar with and intend to follow the travel advisories and guidelines from their local, provincial, and federal public health authorities upon return home from their Tour Program, which may include (but not limited to) COVID-19 testing and a quarantine period.
Illness on tour
If a traveller is diagnosed with COVID-19 while on tour, the traveller will be required to isolate based on the guidance of the destination they are in. In accordance with local guidelines, the remainder of the tour group may be required to quarantine on tour and adhere to local testing guidelines for COVID-19. As a reminder, EF’s exclusive COVID Care Promise is provided to all groups to offer support in this instance.
Looking ahead
As we enhance and innovate on our own health and safety protocols, we’ll continue to monitor guidance from Public Health Canada and local and federal authorities worldwide. We will incorporate new procedures where appropriate as part of the comprehensive safety measures that are standard on every EF tour.
