SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

TRAVEL

Reader question: When can my partner travel to Norway? 

As Covid-19 infections trend downwards, travel restrictions are lifted and more and more are vaccinated, many are beginning to wonder when they can reunite with their partner in Norway. Here’s what you need to know about when partners will be able to enter Norway.

Reader question: When can my partner travel to Norway? 
Hopefully couples could be reunited by the summer. Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Reader question: Does anyone know when Norway will open the borders for partners to finally get together with their partners? 

Since January, Norway has had strict entry restrictions that have left many separated from their loved ones. Norway essentially closed its borders to everyone who isn’t a citizen or resident. 

This is regardless of whether you are immune to Covid-19 through vaccination or having had the virus and recovered.

There are some exceptions, which you can see a list of here

The government currently hasn’t set a date when partners will be permitted to visit again. However, through a combination of Norway’s reopening plan, vaccine passports and the easing of entry for certain countries with low infection rates lovers could be back in each others arms this summer. 

Entry from “yellow” countries

Under the Norwegian government’s Covid traffic light classification those countries that are ranked “yellow” are deemed to have low enough infection rates to allow for safe travel to Norway.

Recently, the government said that entry would reopen for yellow countries, and quarantine hotels would no longer be required for those travelling from countries with low enough infection rates.

READ MORE: Can I enter Norway if I’ve been vaccinated against Covid-19? 

In theory, partners from yellow countries can travel to Norway. Currently, only Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Iceland and parts of Finland are listed as yellow countries. 

The list of yellow countries is expected to grow in the future, the government has said “the list will change in the future as more countries vaccinate and infections fall.”   

You can view the list of yellow countries here

The list will be assessed weekly by both the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) and the Norwegian Directorate of Health. 

Furthermore, those arriving from yellow countries are not required to quarantine too, according to the NIPH’s website.

As the list grows in the future, more and more will hopefully be able to reunite with partners in Oslo.

However, only countries, including the UK, the EEA and Schengen area are considered for the yellow list. 

Entry for partners and the reopening plan 

Previously the government has said it would consider entry for partners as part of step two of its reopening plan. 

This, unfortunately, is no longer the case. 

Entry for partners will now be considered during step three of Norway’s reopening plan. 

“A reassessment of the restrictions on entry will be made in connection with step three of the reopening plan. Then, among other things, further relief will be considered for business travellers, family, partners and international students,” The government said in a statement

Frustratingly for many waiting to be reunited with their loved ones government hasn’t set any solid dates on when it would go ahead with step three, but step three isn’t expected to go ahead until towards the end of June at the earliest. 

Similarly, government hasn’t offered any specifics on which countries it would allow entry from, or whether travellers will have to be vaccinated, or enter a quarantine hotel.  

Vaccine passports 

Vaccine passports may offer an alternative option to reunite couples in Norway. 

Norway expects its vaccine passport, or corona certificate, to be ready in June before the EU’s Covid passport scheme is ready.

Prime Minister Erna Solberg has said that the country could allow cross-border travel for vaccinated travellers.

“If Norway has a certificate in place before that, we will consider opening travel to and from the EU before the European certificate is in place,” Solberg said. 

This would open the door for those that have been vaccinated to enter Norway to visit their partner. 

The government haven’t outlined how this would work in practice, or what kind of proof would be required, or which countries they will work with. 

The EU is launching its own vaccine passport which may allow fully vaccinated travellers to travel to Norway. 

Norway has been invited to participate in the EU’s vaccine passport scheme, and the country is designing it’s own passport within the framework of the EU’s vaccine passport.

READ MORE:  What’s the latest on how the EU’s ‘Covid passports’ will work for travellers? 

The EU vaccine passport will prove the holder has either; 

  • been fully vaccinated
  • recently recovered from the virus (meaning the holder has antibodies in their system)
  • recently tested negative for Covid

Travellers would need to have received an EU approved vaccine. The vaccines currently approved are Pfizer/Biotech, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson. 

Both passports can be presented as a QR code accessible with a smart phone app.

The EU vaccine passport will also be available as a paper document.

The EU has said the scheme is on track to be ready by the end of June. 

But it says: “The political agreement will now have to be formally adopted by the European Parliament and the Council. The regulation will enter into force on July 1st, with a phasing-in period of six weeks for the issuance of certificates for those Member States that need additional time.”

A six-week phasing in period would mean the scheme would be fully operational by mid-August. 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

TRAVEL

Explore Austria: Mauer, a charming wine-hiking spot on Vienna’s outskirts

Catch the very tail-end of the wine season and autumn foliage in one of the lesser-explored corners of the Austrian capital: Mauer.

Explore Austria: Mauer, a charming wine-hiking spot on Vienna’s outskirts
Beautiful views and cosy taverns await you on the edge of Vienna. Photo: Catherine Edwards

Wine-hiking is an autumn must-do in Austria. There’s the official Wine Hiking Day (Weinwandertag) that usually draws in big crowds, but it’s also possible to follow the routes through beautiful scenery and wine taverns on your own.

Mauer in the southwest of Vienna is one of the routes that is mostly frequented by locals.


The footpath takes you through scenic vineyards. Photo: Catherine Edwards

You can reach this part of the 23rd district using Vienna’s public transport, and you have a few options. From the Hietzing station on the U4 line, you can take the tramline 60 or bus 56A. The former will take you either to Mauer’s central square or you can get off earlier at Franz-Asenbauer-Gasse to start the hike. If it’s too early in the day for wine just yet, you could start your day at the small and charming Designo cafe (Geßlgasse 6).

Otherwise, the residential area itself doesn’t have much to see, but keep an eye out as you wander between the taverns later — there are some beautiful buildings.

To start the hike, head west along Franz-Asenbauer Gasse, which will take you up into the vineyards, growing some red wine and Vienna’s specialty Gemischter Satz or ‘field blend’, which as the name suggests is a mixture of different types of grapes.

Photo: Catherine Edwards

The paved road takes a left turn, but the hiking route follows a smaller path further upwards. Here you’ll have magnificent views over the whole of Vienna.

If you stick to the official hiking route (see a map from Weinwandern here) you can keep the whole route under 5 kilometres. But more adventurous types don’t need to feel limited.

You can also follow the Stadtwanderweg 6 route (see a map here) either in full, which will add on a hefty 13 kilometres, or just in part, and venture further into the Mauerwald. If you do this, one spot to aim for is the Schießstätte, a former hunting lodge offering hearty Austrian meals.

EXPLORE AUSTRIA

In any case, you should definitely take a small detour to see the Wotrubakirche, an example of brutalist architecture from the mid-1970s built on a site that was used as a barracks during the Second World War.

Not far from the church is the Pappelteich, a small pond that is not only an important habitat for local flora and fauna, but a popular picnic spot for hikers. Its only water supply is from the rain, and due to climate change the pond has almost dried out in recent years, prompting the city to take action to boost its water supply by adding a permanent pipe.


The church is made up of over 150 concrete blocks. Photo: Catherine Edwards

What you really come to Mauer for, though, are the Heuriger or Viennese wine taverns. 

The most well-known is Edlmoser (Maurer Lange Gasse 123) which has previously been named as the best in Vienna. Note that it’s not open all year so check the website, but in 2021 it should be open between November 5th and 21st, and is also serving the goose that is a popular feature on Viennese menus this time of year.

Tip for translating Heuriger opening times: look for the word ausg’steckt, which is used by those taverns which aren’t open year round. They will also often show that they’re open by attaching a bunch of green twigs to the sign or front door.


Buschenschank Grausenburger. Photo: Catherine Edwards

Also worth visiting are cosy Buschenschank Grausenburger (Maurer Lange Gasse 101a), Heuriger Wiltschko (Wittgensteinstrasse 143 — located near the start of the hiking route, this is a good place to begin your tour) and Heuriger Fuchs-Steinklammer (Jesuitensteig 28).

SHOW COMMENTS