Tag: lockdown

St. Kitts comes out of lockdown and announces new, lightened, travel and quarantine restrictions

On June 11 2021 the government announced a 2 week curfew/lockdown – a light version of the full lockdown that was later imposed on June 26.

St. Kitts has now exited the lockdown and the government has announced the reopening of the country with new, lighter, travel restrictions to compete with other islands in the Caribbean.

Shortened quarantine period

The St. Kitts government has announced that quarantine periods for fully vaccinated returning nationals and residents have been shortened to 3 days with a negative PCR test before their arrival into St. Kitts.

A second test is administered on the 4th day and with a negative PCR result they can be released from quarantine.

The original mask rules are still in effect.

St. Kitts still in curfew

Though the country is now open for business and to the public, a general curfew is still in effect. Curfew begins at 9pm and ends the following day at 5am.

For more information visit http://www.stkittstourism.kn/travel-requirements

St. Kitts & Nevis Implements Restriction of Movement – Borders Still Open To International Travelers

Basseterre, St. Kitts (June 14, 2021) – On Friday, June 11, 2021, The Prime Minister of St. Kitts & Nevis Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris announced a period of restriction of movement. The period and guidelines for the restriction of movement are listed below.

Commencing on Saturday June 12, 2021 to Saturday June 26, 2021:  

  • Movement is restricted from 6:00 p.m. of each day until 5:00 a.m. the following day.
  • International borders remain open for travel by commercial air and sea vessels.
  • During this period of restriction of movement, visitors vacationing in place are being asked to verify with their hotels prior to arrival the respective activities they can do on property.
  • For those persons staying 7 – 14 days, no tours or attraction sites will be operated. 

During this time, we are asking international travelers vacationing in place to be aware that only essential business will be able to operate. This includes airports and seaports, “Travel Approved” hotels or quarantine facilities, approved taxi operators, approved ferry operators, bakeries, supermarkets, pharmacies, private medical facilities, banks and other businesses where employees can practice social distancing and hygiene protocols. Restaurants can operate only for delivery and takeout, with the exception of restaurants in “Vacation in Place” Travel Approved hotels catering to their in-house guests.

As announced on May 29, 2021 only fully vaccinated travelers will be allowed entry to the Federation. Exemptions are in place for Citizens and Residents of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis and children under the age of 18 coming from international destinations. All Travel Protocols and Requirements remaining in place for the Federation of St. Kitts & Nevis. Please see  https://www.stkittstourism.kn/travel-requirements

With the summer family travel season underway, please note the travel requirements for non-vaccinated children under 18:

  • Non-vaccinated children under 18 traveling with fully vaccinated parents are welcome.
  • If the family is staying 9 days or less, the current Vacation in Place guidelines apply.
  • If the family is staying 10 days or more, the parents and the child will have to Vacation in Place until day 14 when the child and adults will be tested.
  • Vaccinated parents traveling with a non-vaccinated child will not be allowed to integrate into the Federation until after the child is tested on day 14 and the test results come back negative.

The previously announced travel requirements for non-vaccinated travelers are null and void.  Below are the travel requirements for fully vaccinated travelers:

  1. A traveler is considered fully vaccinated when two weeks have passed since receiving their second dose of a two dose vaccine series (Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna or AstraZeneca/Oxford) or two weeks after they have received a single dose vaccine (Johnson + Johnson).
  2. Proof of vaccination is a scanned copy of the traveler’s official COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card. Upon submission of their vaccination card and completion of their travel authorization form, once verified, international travelers will receive authorization of their vaccination card and a KN number.
  3. Traveler must complete the Travel Authorization Form on the national website (www.knatravelform.kn), including uploading your proof of vaccination and proof of booking at a Travel Approve hotel.
  4. Upon submission of a completed KNA travel form the traveler must upload their official COVID-19 RT-PCR negative test result from a CLIA/CDC/UKAS approved lab accredited with ISO/IEC 17025 standard taken 72 hours prior to travel. There are no exceptions to the 72-hour timeframe.  
  5. Upon submission of the copy of their official vaccination card and copy of their COVID -19 RT-PCR test negative result, the traveler’s information will be reviewed and they will receive the approval letter to enter the Federation (letter as pictured below).
  6. For their trip, the traveler should bring a copy of their COVID-19 Vaccination Record Card and their negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test. Please note, acceptable COVID-19 RT-PCR tests must be taken by nasopharyngeal sample. Self-samples, rapid tests, or home tests will be considered invalid.
  7. International travelers will undergo a health screening at the airport which includes a temperature check and a health questionnaire. Upon arrival, if a fully vaccinated traveler is exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 during the health screening, they can be required to undergo a RT- PCR test at the airport at their own cost (150 USD).
  8. Fully vaccinated international travelers arriving by air will be asked to Vacation in Place at a “Travel Approved” hotel for nine (9) days.
  9. All fully vaccinated international travelers arriving by air are free to move throughout the “Travel Approved” hotel, interact with other guests and partake in hotel activities only.
  10. Fully vaccinated international travelers arriving by air and staying beyond 9 days are required to be tested on day 9 (USD 150 visitors’ cost) of their stay and once their test is negative, they may integrate into the Federation, but will need to follow the restricted movement protocols June 12 – June 26.
  11. Effective May 1, 2021, fully vaccinated international travelers arriving by air are not required to submit an exit RT-PCR test. If a pre-departure test is still required for the country of destination, the RT-PCR test will be taken 72 hours prior to departure. Example: If a person is staying 7 days, their pre-departure test will be on day 4; if a person is staying 14 days, their pre-departure test will be taken on day 11.
  12. Travel Approved hotels for international travelers are: Four Seasons
    • Golden Rock Inn 
    • Marriott Beach Club
    • Montpelier Plantation & Beach 
    • Paradise Beach
    • Park Hyatt
    • Royal St. Kitts Hotel

International travelers who would like to stay at private rental home or condo must stay at a property that has been pre-approved as a quarantine housing at their own cost, including security. Please submit request to info@stkittstourism.kn.

All Confirmed Cases in St. Kitts & Nevis are Recovered

Basseterre, St. Kitts (May 18, 2020) – St. Kitts & Nevis is pleased to announce that, as of today, all 15 confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in the Federation have successfully recovered from the virus with 0 deaths. St. Kitts & Nevis was the last country in the Americas to confirm a case of the virus and among the first to report all cases having recovered with no deaths.

“An important milestone was reached today with the recovery of all 15 persons testing positive for COVID-19. This demonstrates the unprecedented achievements by St. Kitts & Nevis and the Caribbean region in containing and controlling the spread of the virus,” said Minister of Tourism the Hon. Lindsay F.P. Grant. “I am gratified that our Federation’s ‘all society approach’ starting with early and aggressive actions, the excellent work of our medical community and the cooperation of all persons in the Federation have brought us to this place. However, at this time we must continue to remain vigilant with our mitigation procedures in place for everyone to remain safe.”

With the advice of the Chief Medical Officer, the Medical Chief of Staff and medical experts St. Kitts initiated a comprehensive operational response including an early and aggressive quarantine, testing and contact tracing program that has proven to be successful. It has been 29 days since the last case was reported. As such, Government has begun to ease restrictions to allow for more economic activity and for citizens to have more exercise time outside their homes.

Federation has succeeded in flattening the curve, however, with the advice of our medical experts, the borders remain closed. Everyone is advised to exercise precautions and adhere to the regulations and measures put in place to ensure the safety and health of all residents and citizens, even as restrictions have begun to be incrementally relaxed in the Federation and around the Caribbean.

Therefore, limited curfews remain in effect as follows:

Limited curfew (relaxed restrictions wherein persons may leave their residence go to work, to shop for essential items but curfews in effect every night):

  • Tuesday, May 19 through Friday, May 22 from 5:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Beaches will be open from 5:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. for swimming and exercising only with the social distancing measures of remaining at least 6 feet apart in full effect with the exception of persons living in the same household.

In addition to reporting that all 15 confirmed positive cases have recovered with 0 deaths, a total of 391 persons have been tested for COVID-19 to date, 15 of whom tested positive with 373 persons tested negative and 3 test results pending. 1 person is currently quarantined in a government facility while 1 person is quarantined at home and 0 persons are in isolation. A total of 813 persons have been released from quarantine. St. Kitts & Nevis has one of the highest testing rates in CARICOM and the Eastern Caribbean and uses only the molecular tests which are the gold standard of testing.

St. Kitts & Nevis’ medical experts further advise that all persons who need to be tested have been tested at this time.

Going forward, we hope everyone, and their families remain safe and healthy.

For more information on COVID-19, please visit www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html and/or http://carpha.org/What-We-Do/Public-Health/Novel-Coronavirus.