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Latvia closes the Baltic “travel bubble” to travelers from Estonia
The so-called Baltic travel bubble, which since the middle of May has allowed free travel in the region by residents of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, partly collapsed September 11 when Latvian authorities put Estonia on a list of places from which travelers must self-isolate for 14 days after entering Latvia.
The Latvian Center for Disease Prevention and Control published its weekly list of infection rates in Europe and some other countries, listing Estonia’s Covid -19 infection rate at 20.8 per 100 000 population, well over the Latvian limit of 16 per 100 000
The new restrictions, which had been expected, essentially end all tourism and personal visits between both countries and apply. as well, to all citizens and residents of Latvia returning from Estonia.
Meanwhile, Lithuania lifted its threshold for requiring self-isolation by travelers to 25 cases of covid-19 per 100 000 inhabitants, meaning that Estonians are free to visit, but could not travel by land through Latvia.
The partial collapse of the bubble is seen as a very hard blow to the tourism and hospitality industry in all three countries, with high-spending tourists from Scandinavia and Germany cut off for several weeks and travelers between the Baltic countries practically the only source of…
