Ukraine’s domestic vaccination program, after an extremely sluggish start, is starting to finally gain momentum. According to the latest figures, some 2.15 million Ukrainians are now fully vaccinated against COVID-19 infection.
As the rest of Europe races to develop COVID-19 vaccination travel documents, Ukraine’s attempts to replicate similar paperwork have not been without issues. Many Ukrainians rely on these documents to return to their places of work abroad. The UK and some European Union nations do not currently recognize the Ukrainian vaccination document.
While much of Europe has opened for Ukrainian travelers, many travelers are still subject to strict regulations for up to two weeks upon arrival. This has left many double-vaccinated Ukrainians frustrated, forcing them to either purchase costly PCR tests or pay for costs associated with home isolation.
For expats living in Ukraine, the process is even more confusing. Until recently, many expats reported having problems accessing vaccines in Ukraine, and were obliged either return to their countries of origin or remain unvaccinated in Ukraine.
With Ukraine’s vaccination program now open to all, COVID-19 travel documents are now being issued to residents and citizens alike. Nevertheless, many are now finding that the Ukrainian covid passport is insufficient, leaving them locked out of travel to loved ones or their places of work.
Football and vaccines
An unlikely solution to these COVID-19 woes, however, is to be found in Europe. More specifically, Romania.
This EU member state, struggling to encourage vaccination among local Romanian citizens, has been especially liberal with its vaccination policy.
Vaccines are readily available in Ukraine, but what has drawn Ukrainians to Romania is the oft-coveted European Union vaccine passport. This document, universally recognised by EU member states, allows for quarantine free travel within the EU and other nations, offering Ukrainians the chance to travel unhindered.
Romania currently lists Ukraine as a “green” nation, meaning that Ukrainian tourists can enter the country without testing or need to quarantine. With Ukrainians not requiring a visa to enter the European Union, Romania is an easy and affordable vaccine tourism destination.
Romania’s vaccination system has been up and running with the best Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines since May, meaning many Ukrainians reliant on travel have opted for vaccination abroad rather than at home.
On paper, vaccination is open exclusively to Romanian citizens, residents, and EU citizens. In practice, however, Romanian vaccine centres welcome Ukrainian non-residents.
This came to become known, in part, due to the influx of Ukrainians travelling to Bucharest for the 2020 European Championship. Ukrainian fans flocked to Bucharest on June 13-20 to watch Ukraine play in the group stages of the tournament.
For football fans like Robert Markov, his trip to Romania wasn’t initially motivated by vaccination.
“Together with my friends, we went to Bucharest to support our Ukrainian national team. We spent 6 days in Romania, before we arrived, we had not considered getting vaccinated there,” Robert stated in a message. “But then the day before our arrival we found out that some vaccination centres in Bucharest had the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.”
The one-shot J&J vaccine is naturally very attractive for many Ukrainians, allowing them to receive a complete course of vaccine abroad without the need for a booster, all while being issued with European vaccination documents.
“The next morning, we went to one of the vaccination centres, which according to the official website had gotten the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. The whole process was so easy that it blew our minds. The time needed from the entrance into the vaccination center until the moment you leave was faster than going for fast food,” Markov noted.
According to the Ukraine fan, they were offered their choice of vaccine, no questions were asked about the fact that they were not EU citizens, and they left within 30 minutes with a full EU covid passport.
Now many Ukrainians and unvaccinated travellers follow in the footsteps of these EURO 2020 fans. Since the beginning of Romania’s vaccination events in May, the number of tourists entering the country has sharply increased. According to CEIC data, there was a 26% increase in tourists to Romania between May and June alone.
While it has been reported that Ukrainians have been welcomed at Romanian vaccination centers, it is still wise to call before making travel arrangements, as policies may vary between clinics.
A trip to Transylvania
Ukrainians are not alone in travelling to Romania for COVID-19 vaccines. Many expats residing in Ukraine and other countries, compelled by restrictive COVID-19 regulations, have made the trip to the Balkan nation.
The United Kingdom, for example, until recently did not recognise any vaccination administered abroad, effectively forcing Brits abroad into lengthy quarantines on their return to the UK. Entering the country required up to 4 PCR test results and in some cases, hotel quarantine.
With the UK now recognising the EU covid passport, it has offered a new lifeline for those living abroad and wanting to return to the UK, including this reporter, who travelled to Romania for his vaccine in July.
I was compelled to travel to Romania to receive a second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. With the Ukrainian vaccine passport not valid for quarantine-free entry to the United Kingdom, I originally travelled to the UK to take my first vaccine dose. Having spent over $500 on quarantine-related expenses, I vowed to find an alternative.
Hearing from Ukrainians that Romania was a viable alternative for vaccination, I began calling clinics in Bucharest. To my dismay, even with the help of a Romanian speaker, few centres were willing to confirm whether they would actually accommodate me.
Being an EU citizen, I was technically permitted to receive the vaccine legally at any center, however, the risk was too great to book travel without knowing beforehand. After calling around I remembered a vaccination location that had been heavily featured in Western media.
As reported by the BBC, Bran Castle (otherwise known as the famous “Dracula’s Castle”) had been vaccinating tourists since May in a push to boost Transylvanian tourism and encourage vaccination among the locals.
Unlike other vaccination centres in Romania, the Bran Castle clinic was glad to accept my call and was clearly geared towards accommodating international travellers. I was encouraged to come any day of the week and told me that they would also recognise first doses administered abroad.
After a short flight from Kyiv to Bucharest, a two-hour train ride to the city of Brasov, and a 40-minute taxi, I arrived at the castle believed to be the inspiration for Bran Stoker’s “Dracula.” The vaccination centre, on the site of a converted restaurant and visitors’ centre, sits directly underneath the impressive 14th-century castle.
While the centre was quiet, and clearly had not attracted many locals to get vaccinated, I witnessed several Ukrainian families, along with some French and Spanish groups, entering the clinic to get their complementary vaccine.
The vaccines were administered by professional medical staff and both local certification and the EU vaccine document were issued, along with certificates of purely sentimental value.
Economically, while the trip may appear to be an expensive alternative to the free vaccine document offered in Ukraine or other non-EU nations, the trip still costs less than the expenses associated with two weeks of quarantine within the UK. Including flights, accommodation in two cities, food, and other expenses, the trip cost around $400 in total.
With Ukraine’s passport still not being internationally recognized, these costs have become an unavoidable reality for many traveling Ukrainians and expats.
As local Romanian vaccination “events” continue until the end of August and many Ukrainians are eager to travel across Europe this summer, it is likely that many more Ukrainians will make the trip to vaccinate in Romania.
Expats who have already been vaccinated at Ukrainian vaccination centers will undoubtedly be hoping that the Ukrainian government continues to negotiate with international governments to ensure that Ukrainian vaccines allow for quarantine travel across the world.
As Ukraine improves the power of its vaccine passport, undoubtedly the need for vaccine tourism will diminish. According to European Commission, the EU may soon issue covid passports to foreigners with proof of vaccination outside of the EU.
The Ukrainian government is continuing to encourage reciprocal recognition of vaccine passports and it is hoped that as Europe opens up for travel, the Ukrainian document will be recognized more globally. For now, however, Ukrainian tourists may rely on Romania as a last-ditch alternative for quarantine-free travel.
