Our valued sponsor

Where to go for vaccine tourism?

Your question is legit. I am not in a risk group and would probably do better by not considering vaccination.
Unfortunately, in the not so distant future it will be impossible to visit certain countries without having been vaccinated. Already now governments doing all they can to make life difficult for unvaccinated people. For me and many others vaccination is much more a practical question than it is a medical.
Angry Climate Change GIF by GIPHY Studios Originals
Planning to get fake vaccination passport from shady country. That’s another level of “going darks”...maybe we have a business here!
 
  • Like
Reactions: backpacker
Armenia

Last night I came to Yerevan with a PCR test taken within 72 hours to avoid quarantine. I got an Armenian SIM card at the airport and took a Yandex taxi to my hotel.

Today I went to the NCDC ambulance in Northern Avenue pedestrian precinct, waited around for a while and got the jab. I provided my foreign passport, Armenian phone number and hotel name and room number. I choose AstraZeneca because it looks likely to support travel to Western countries. After the jab there is a ten minute wait time so that if you get an allergic reaction the ambulance can take you to hospital. Afterwards I walked 30 seconds to the Astghik Medical Center ambulance and paid $29 for a new PCR for re-entry to Georgia, to be collected the next day.

I have read that Dalma Garden Mall and Megamall also give vaccines to foreigners (hospitals and polyclinics don't seem to).

The Georgian border guard needed some discussion but ended up stamping me out normally despite my 11 month overstay (this might be harder after June 30).

The Armenian nurses were great, but almost everyone taking the jab was Iranian. Let's just say that queueing manners were less than Scandinavian. If you're pushy you'd probably have waited 20 minutes rather than my 2 hours.

Yerevan is really nice and at over 500 AMD to USD it's great value for hotels, food, etc. I look forward to coming back in 10 weeks. I think I'll make it a longer vacation and tour the country.
 
Armenia

Last night I came to Yerevan with a PCR test taken within 72 hours to avoid quarantine. I got an Armenian SIM card at the airport and took a Yandex taxi to my hotel.

Today I went to the NCDC ambulance in Northern Avenue pedestrian precinct, waited around for a while and got the jab. I provided my foreign passport, Armenian phone number and hotel name and room number. I choose AstraZeneca because it looks likely to support travel to Western countries. After the jab there is a ten minute wait time so that if you get an allergic reaction the ambulance can take you to hospital. Afterwards I walked 30 seconds to the Astghik Medical Center ambulance and paid $29 for a new PCR for re-entry to Georgia, to be collected the next day.

I have read that Dalma Garden Mall and Megamall also give vaccines to foreigners (hospitals and polyclinics don't seem to).

The Georgian border guard needed some discussion but ended up stamping me out normally despite my 11 month overstay (this might be harder after June 30).

The Armenian nurses were great, but almost everyone taking the jab was Iranian. Let's just say that queueing manners were less than Scandinavian. If you're pushy you'd probably have waited 20 minutes rather than my 2 hours.

Yerevan is really nice and at over 500 AMD to USD it's great value for hotels, food, etc. I look forward to coming back in 10 weeks. I think I'll make it a longer vacation and tour the country.
Great insight!
 
Last night I came to Yerevan with a PCR test taken within 72 hours to avoid quarantine.
That's interesting. I will look into that.
Did you have to pre-register before going to NCDC? Are vaccination centres like Dalma Garden Mall and Megamall privately run? Do they offer the vaccine only for a limited time?

I guess Marshrutkas are up and running. Was there a specific reason why you took the plane for this relatively short hop?
 
Just took a quick look into the fares TBS-EVN. I am absolutely puzzled: No matter when, the nonstop flight operated by "Aircompany Armenia" (marketed by Georgian Airways) is quoted with USD 424.- (round trip). That is a 30-minute hop. These fares seem to be surreal at best damn_(:mad:

@khinkali
Did you find a cheaper way to purchase the tickets? Any tip for discounted local tickets??
 
@Bagpacker no pre-registration, you just turn up hence the disorderly queue. I don't know who runs the other mobile vaccinations but I guess it's the same. I didn't read anything about an end to the service; I doubt they have planned far ahead as the situation with local takeup, excess vaccine and desire for tourists is likely to vary.

I've always felt that TBS->YVN is expensive compared to local wages. More so now because they only offer flexible fares.

The trains are meant to restart in a week or so but I gladly paid the $420+ USD flight as it seemed the least virus-ridden transport method. It was also $000s cheaper and much more convenient than a month in USA or Russia. If I'd just wanted a passport stamp I'd have hired a car and driven to Sadakhlo.
 
I went to Ortachala bus terminal today. They already provide a daily Marshrutka to Yerervan but they also told me that the Ford Transit (GEL 30.-) rarely fills up. If all agree they then switch to the smaller Mercedes for GEL 40.- ns2 .

That with the nighttrain is correct. I asked at Central Railway Station and they confirmed 15-June-2021. Ticket sale will start on Friday.
For your next trip the train might be the way to go because you can book an entire compartment for yourself (ask for "spalny"= 2-bed compartments, 1. Class). What you have to avoid is "kupé" (= 4 plastic covered bunks in a small compartment, 2. Class) and "platskartny" (wooden bunks along the corridor, 3. Class).
I did that trip a few years ago and even though the train is very slow, renting an entire compartment and bringing some food + wine makes it a comfortable journey in "spalny".
 
@Bagpacker I'd like to do the train some time, but I would have just spend a few $00 to take the 30 minute flight, at least for the first shot. TBS was empty, the flight was quite empty. No worries about sharing a toilet or whatever.

I just had the paper PCR printout from Evex. It has no stamp, no letterhead, no signature. I didn't do the ARMED thing, it looks optional but I'd have done it if I'd known about it.

I have the border crossing thing for Georgia, but I am not aware of any for Armenia. I got travel insurance from GPI.
 
  • Like
Reactions: backpacker
Breaking news. Just as we suspected, past COVID-19 antibodies protect you as much as any vaccine does.

A new study suggests the COVID-19 vaccines offer previously infected patients with no greater immunity than they already have . . . .

The study found 99.3% of all COVID-19 infections in the test group came in unvaccinated patients who were not previously infected with the virus. The remaining .07% infections occurred in vaccinated patients who were not previously infected.

"The cumulative incidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection remained almost zero among previously infected unvaccinated subjects . . . .
https://www.newsmax.com/politics/study-vaccinations-pandemic-covid/2021/06/08/id/1024390/
 
  • Like
Reactions: khinkali
This is supposedly a forum for those who are disgusted at the levels of government overreach in their daily lives.

Yet here we have a thread of people looking for vaccine tourism so they can take an experimental jab? lol

It's bad news if the category of people looking to move offshore think they have to resort to taking a quasi-mandated gene therapy.
yes indeed. A sad state of affairs with an overreach as maybe never? seen before.
There are also shots which are not gene therapies and based on traditional methods. Maybe that is also worth a consideration when doing vaccine tourism.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jjrapy
@khinkali
I just returned from Yerevan. Other things aside, I took the jab in Northern Ave. . Worked fine.
Just a word of warning regarding the second jab: Do go exactly by the date written on your vaccination card! The nurse told me that all this is a promotion and of all participants about 96% are Iranians, 3% other foreigners and only 1% are Armenians. So, the program can be stopped anytime and the government might change rules and will insist on the date written on the vaccination card.

I took the train in both directions which was great. Price for 1. Class (spalny) is GEL 150.65 (one-way; the way back from Yerevan to Tbilisi can only be booked in Yerevan), payable in cash at the ticket counter of Tbilisi Central Station. It is a good idea to do the reservation a few days in advance. The train now consists of brand new Russia-build carriages with excellent air-conditioning and good bedding. Every compartment is equipped with sockets which means it is possible to run/load a laptop. The ride is very smooth and comfortable, the bathrooms are clean and they even gave out some bottled water and instant coffee for free.
The train stops on both sides of the border for about 30 minutes. At the Georgian border station the Georgians collect all passports to check and stamp them in their police office. After that they again jump on the train and "try" to return the correct passport. Well, it is a Georgian organisation which means it does not work as smooth and precise as a Swiss clockwork (they showed me a selection of passports and I had to pick mine bor&%# ).
Then the train moves on to the Armenian border post. The Armenians are better equipped. They do have mobile passport checkers which enable them to scan and stamp all passports onboard the train. A couple of nurses also enter the train in order to check PCR tests and scan the temperature of every passenger.
Neither on the Georgian nor on the Armenian side of the border did I have to leave the train or my compartment. The border guards and nurses will always come to the passengers' compartment/seat.
That's it and afterwards nobody disturbs. It is easily possible to get at least 6 hours of undisturbed sleep on the train. If one want to enjoy the beautiful view towards Mount Ararat it is worth getting up about one hour before arrival (the train enters Yerevan station at 07:35AM).

Go Green - Take the Train. hap¤#"
 
Several off-topic posts deleted. Keep to the topic or risk warnings/bans.

This thread is about where to go for vaccine, presumably for those who are interested in doing so. It is not about the risks associated with COVID-19 vaccinations. If you would like to discuss that, please start a separate thread. We encourage the discussions, and only ask that posts remain on topic for the relevant thread.