Just sharing the facts and experiences I've learned having spent 30 hours calling airlines, the nations top (and bottom) health systems, clinics, and State and County Health Departments regarding COVID-19 testing so you can go on safari.
What you need:
-You are required to have a COVID-19 PCR test with a negative result. The PCR is the "gold standard" according to the CDC and most nations are requiring this specific test. There are many other test critierion available but they are insufficient for travel. Be advised, the "gold standard" test has a 30% false report rate so the test you obtain may indicate you have Covid or not, in either case incorrectly, up to 30% of the time. "MILFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The current CDC nucleic acid test kits for SARS-CoV-2 generate 30% false-positive and 20% false-negative results in the best state public health laboratory, Dr. Sin Hang Lee reported in a peer-reviewed article published in the International Journal of Geriatrics and Rehabilitation, an online journal based in Japan"
Who you need it for and when:
-Each country you visit will have inbound and outbound will have a timeline. For connections within the UAE, you must have a PCR that was TAKEN within 96 hours of departure. For Zimbabwe, you must have a PCR that was TAKEN 48 hours or less prior to arrival in Zimbabwe. For departure from Zimbabwe you must have a PCR TAKEN within 72 hours prior to departure. Be aware, it looks like the African nations are easing their written rules that say "in the past 48 hours" and instead accepting "48 hours from departure" because obviously, the flights can be 29-38 hours to get from USA to your African destination country making a test, lab analysis, result, and boarding of a plane impossible in the timeline allotted. On the ground in Africa professional hunters are reporting clients are getting there and getting out using the weaker than written interpretations, but it's still 48 hours from departure which leaves the slimmest of windows for an American to get a test.
Why is the word TAKEN in bold?:
The rules all define the requirements as TAKEN. As in, the test was taken <48 hours from departure for example. This is a key point.
Why this is impossible in America:
-In most states, the current COVID-19 rapid testing is performed by local hospitals, clinics, and drive-through test centers and then lab tested by Quest Diagnostics or Labcorp. The current time from test to the mailing is uncertain, but the laboratories are turning around their test results from WHEN THEY RECEIVE THE SPECIMEN in 48-72 hours. Thus, the results you receive are in effect, utterly worthless as they are stale by the time they are received. Further, the US healthsystem is overtaxed and most clinics and hospitals are denying access to testing without the completion of a questionnaire. That questionnaire will reject a healthy patient from being tested and they do not have a means to provide rapid-PCR for flying purposes. Many websites related to travel reflect these problems including ThePointsGuy, CNN, and other sources.
Aren't the airlines doing something about this?:
-Yes and no, but most entirely NO. Yes, some airlines like American, United, and JetBlue are providing subsidized or free testing for travel on their airlines. However, they are either not using PCR testing as is required for international travel to safari destinations, OR they are requiring test results in the past 5 days thus their window of acceptability is so long that it makes logistics feasible for providing this service. The test they provided for cheap or free isn't useful because its too old to be admitted in an African nation by the time you arrive.
So how does it get done?
-There are boutique clinics, concierge telemedicine companies, and online firms that can come *close* to achieving the goal necessary of a PCR test administered less than 48 hours from departure. These firms run expensive though, $400 for thecovidconsultants.com as an example of one of the fastest choices available including express overnight processing. Their boutique lab gets all the FedEx Express packages by 10:30AM that were shipped the day prior and issues a report between 6pm and 9pm that day. Even with this, the math of doing a nasal swab or spit PCR test, getting it to a Fedex depot by cutoff, having it tested the next day, getting results, printing the results on paper (digital isn't allowed in most jurisdictions) and getting to the airport for your flight is, well, impossible.
So how does it really, really get done?
-A convenient deception. These luxury rapid COVID PCR test firms for travelers specifically omit sample date. The report issued does not reflect when the specimen was collected, only when the report was generated and the date. So it is left to assume that if the lab gets it on Monday at 10:30AM and issues the results at 6:00PM Monday that you were tested on Monday and you have until Wednesday at 6PM to jump on that flight before your 48 hour from departure timeline runs out. This is regardless to the fact that you could have had a healthy friend provide the sample for you, or you could have provided a sample 10 days earlier and chose to mail it in timed so that the results issue <48 hours from departure. Basically, its a tax on travel to play a game that is indeed a farcical game with an impossible to meet Service Level and Turnaround Time objective.
So how do I get home after Safari?
-Reports on the ground suggest that in Africa PCR tests are cheap, fast, and readily available. One PH I spoke with states all of his crew get mandatory PCRs weekly as part of their employment process at present. So you need to allow time on the tail of your in-country safari to obtain a test and a result (72 hours or less from departure) to board your flight home.
What's this I hear about charges at African airports, mandatory tests, and 14-day quarantines in locked facilities?
-The most recent clarifications, at least in Zimbabwe, are that you must pay $60 at the airport upon landing IF YOU ARE SICK. If you fail a COVID test administered by them, you are locked up for 14 days in a State mandated facility. If you have a valid PCR when you arrive and you are not displaying symptoms, you hop in your PH's cruiser and you're free to go.
In conclusion:
-Know your maximum timelines for testing. Use a private Free-to-fly PCR testing firm at a cost of $400. Time your sample submission to ensure the results are issued not too soon and not too late. Be aware that all those testing facilities you hear about on the news are either not using the required PCR, will not test you if you're not sick, and in any case will not deliver the evidence you need in the time required to go on a safari.
What you need:
-You are required to have a COVID-19 PCR test with a negative result. The PCR is the "gold standard" according to the CDC and most nations are requiring this specific test. There are many other test critierion available but they are insufficient for travel. Be advised, the "gold standard" test has a 30% false report rate so the test you obtain may indicate you have Covid or not, in either case incorrectly, up to 30% of the time. "MILFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The current CDC nucleic acid test kits for SARS-CoV-2 generate 30% false-positive and 20% false-negative results in the best state public health laboratory, Dr. Sin Hang Lee reported in a peer-reviewed article published in the International Journal of Geriatrics and Rehabilitation, an online journal based in Japan"
Who you need it for and when:
-Each country you visit will have inbound and outbound will have a timeline. For connections within the UAE, you must have a PCR that was TAKEN within 96 hours of departure. For Zimbabwe, you must have a PCR that was TAKEN 48 hours or less prior to arrival in Zimbabwe. For departure from Zimbabwe you must have a PCR TAKEN within 72 hours prior to departure. Be aware, it looks like the African nations are easing their written rules that say "in the past 48 hours" and instead accepting "48 hours from departure" because obviously, the flights can be 29-38 hours to get from USA to your African destination country making a test, lab analysis, result, and boarding of a plane impossible in the timeline allotted. On the ground in Africa professional hunters are reporting clients are getting there and getting out using the weaker than written interpretations, but it's still 48 hours from departure which leaves the slimmest of windows for an American to get a test.
Why is the word TAKEN in bold?:
The rules all define the requirements as TAKEN. As in, the test was taken <48 hours from departure for example. This is a key point.
Why this is impossible in America:
-In most states, the current COVID-19 rapid testing is performed by local hospitals, clinics, and drive-through test centers and then lab tested by Quest Diagnostics or Labcorp. The current time from test to the mailing is uncertain, but the laboratories are turning around their test results from WHEN THEY RECEIVE THE SPECIMEN in 48-72 hours. Thus, the results you receive are in effect, utterly worthless as they are stale by the time they are received. Further, the US healthsystem is overtaxed and most clinics and hospitals are denying access to testing without the completion of a questionnaire. That questionnaire will reject a healthy patient from being tested and they do not have a means to provide rapid-PCR for flying purposes. Many websites related to travel reflect these problems including ThePointsGuy, CNN, and other sources.
Aren't the airlines doing something about this?:
-Yes and no, but most entirely NO. Yes, some airlines like American, United, and JetBlue are providing subsidized or free testing for travel on their airlines. However, they are either not using PCR testing as is required for international travel to safari destinations, OR they are requiring test results in the past 5 days thus their window of acceptability is so long that it makes logistics feasible for providing this service. The test they provided for cheap or free isn't useful because its too old to be admitted in an African nation by the time you arrive.
So how does it get done?
-There are boutique clinics, concierge telemedicine companies, and online firms that can come *close* to achieving the goal necessary of a PCR test administered less than 48 hours from departure. These firms run expensive though, $400 for thecovidconsultants.com as an example of one of the fastest choices available including express overnight processing. Their boutique lab gets all the FedEx Express packages by 10:30AM that were shipped the day prior and issues a report between 6pm and 9pm that day. Even with this, the math of doing a nasal swab or spit PCR test, getting it to a Fedex depot by cutoff, having it tested the next day, getting results, printing the results on paper (digital isn't allowed in most jurisdictions) and getting to the airport for your flight is, well, impossible.
So how does it really, really get done?
-A convenient deception. These luxury rapid COVID PCR test firms for travelers specifically omit sample date. The report issued does not reflect when the specimen was collected, only when the report was generated and the date. So it is left to assume that if the lab gets it on Monday at 10:30AM and issues the results at 6:00PM Monday that you were tested on Monday and you have until Wednesday at 6PM to jump on that flight before your 48 hour from departure timeline runs out. This is regardless to the fact that you could have had a healthy friend provide the sample for you, or you could have provided a sample 10 days earlier and chose to mail it in timed so that the results issue <48 hours from departure. Basically, its a tax on travel to play a game that is indeed a farcical game with an impossible to meet Service Level and Turnaround Time objective.
So how do I get home after Safari?
-Reports on the ground suggest that in Africa PCR tests are cheap, fast, and readily available. One PH I spoke with states all of his crew get mandatory PCRs weekly as part of their employment process at present. So you need to allow time on the tail of your in-country safari to obtain a test and a result (72 hours or less from departure) to board your flight home.
What's this I hear about charges at African airports, mandatory tests, and 14-day quarantines in locked facilities?
-The most recent clarifications, at least in Zimbabwe, are that you must pay $60 at the airport upon landing IF YOU ARE SICK. If you fail a COVID test administered by them, you are locked up for 14 days in a State mandated facility. If you have a valid PCR when you arrive and you are not displaying symptoms, you hop in your PH's cruiser and you're free to go.
In conclusion:
-Know your maximum timelines for testing. Use a private Free-to-fly PCR testing firm at a cost of $400. Time your sample submission to ensure the results are issued not too soon and not too late. Be aware that all those testing facilities you hear about on the news are either not using the required PCR, will not test you if you're not sick, and in any case will not deliver the evidence you need in the time required to go on a safari.