Yellow fever

[B Stromberg]

You will be fine WITHOUT the vaccination FOR THIS TRIP. You journey into Brazil is the LAST place you will visit.

 

You MAY have problems in the future visiting various countries-specifically SE Asia, Panama, Costa Rica, and some SA countries. IF an immigration officer in one of these countries notices the Brazilian visa (and how can they not-it takes a whole page), they MAY ask for a Yellow Fever cert. I have personally seen it happen in Peru, Panama, China and Vietnam/Cambodia. You don't want to have to argue what is an "endemic" area with an immigration officer in a foreign country who most likely does not speak your language fluently. It is truly up to their discretion whether they allow entrance or not, where or what is considered an endemic area and then determine whether you were in the endemic area.

 

To prevent FUTURE problems, unless you have a medical reason NOT to get the shot, just get it and be done with it. It is good for 10 years. It would be a shame to be denied entry into another country when you "only went to Rio". Don't think it can't happen-I saw it with a fellow plane passenger in China.

 

Thank you very much for your help. I think it's better then to get the shot - who knows which super-last-minute-offers we perhaps get in the future to one of these countries...

[cruisenfever]

Who is correct?

 

GREATAM: "Brazil DOES NOT REQUIRE a YF vaccination IF you have not been in Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Columbia, Venezuela, Panama, a couple of other Central American countries and most of Africa 90 days prior to entering Brazil."

 

or

 

MARAZUL: "Brazil will not let you in without a visa and they will not give you a visa if you don't have a vaccination or a waiver."

We applied for Brazilian Visas this past January for our cruise in March which started in Valparaiso and ended in Sao Paulo.

 

Marazul is correct in that you can not enter into Brazil without a Visa and that is entry by walking, driving, flying or cruising. We DID NOT, however, have to have proof of a YF vaccination when applying for our Visas as that is not a requirement.

 

So, my vote goes to Greatam!:D

[DD]

We're getting the YF vac, as we're planning on going to Iguazu, so this inquiry is basically just curiosity on my part. If one travels to Brazil and does NOT get the vac, for how long can entry into other countries (countries that require the vac if you have been to a country that has an endemic zone) be denied -- 90 days? 6 months? a year?

[marazul]

It depends on the country. Check the consulate's website.

Medically, 90 days should be more than enough.

[greatam]

If one travels to Brazil and does NOT get the vac, for how long can entry into other countries (countries that require the vac if you have been to a country that has an endemic zone) be denied -- 90 days? 6 months? a year?

 

This is the true Catch 22. Most of the websites state 90 days. BUT and it's a BIG BUT

 

It all depends on the discretion of the particular immigration officer you deal with and how he wants to interpret the rules of HIS country. One that is more worldly/sophisticated may believe that 90 days is MORE than enough time to prevent transmission of YF. But another may believe that ANY previous visit to a YF country is a chance to ask for the vaccination record. I haven't been in Brazil for almost 2 years (Feb 2007). I have been asked for YF 4 out of 6 trips to Peru since that time-February 2007 (which I expected), November 2007, January 2008 and just two weeks ago (which I certainly didn't expect). All except the February 2007 trip MUCH more than 90 days after I was in Brazil.

 

And the saddest thing I have ever seen in my world business travels. Young man was on the same plane with me from Hong Kong to Beijing. They noticed my Brazilian visa and asked for YF. I had it-I don't travel internationally without it. He also had a Brazilian visa-dated about 9 months before his entry into China, but he had no YF certificate. He had a contract to teach English in Beijing. He had little money and his credit cards were tapped out to pay for plane fare and incidentals for his trip to China. The Chinese were NOT about to let him in. He kept saying "but I only went to Rio for Carnival" "didn't go to the Amazon". He even spoke a little Mandarin, but was making NO progress. It was go back to Hong Kong, get the vaccination, then return to China so he could teach English. He was frantically trying to find a plane ticket and money so he could continue on. I have often wondered what happened to him. I hope nothing bad.

 

So there is truly NO correct definitive answer.

[AmoMondo]

It would appear that if you have an EEC passport 9which I do) you dont need a visa to enter Brazil, I'm having conflicting stories about whether I need to have evidence of having the yellow fever vaccination or not though. having just returned from an appointment at the travel clinic at my GPs, I'm definitely going to get the vaccination. All i needed to see to convince me was the map of the latest outbreak areas within Brazil. if I was staying the whole time in sao paolo I might be ok, but the coastal outbreak area is pretty extensive and covers the area I have to travel through by road to reach Santos where my cruise departs from. it also covers the coastal areas for my 2nd and 3rd port of call. Even if I don't actually stray in to the area most at risk, i can't guarantee that i won't come into someone who has not been immunised who has. Don't care how much the vaccination will be, I'm just not prepared to take risks with my health. being ill overseas is no fun at all and I'd prefer not to risk being hospitalized in Brazil

[AmoMondo]

It would appear that if you have an EEC passport 9which I do) you dont need a visa to enter Brazil, I'm having conflicting stories about whether I need to have evidence of having the yellow fever vaccination or not though. having just returned from an appointment at the travel clinic at my GPs, I'm definitely going to get the vaccination. All i needed to see to convince me was the map of the latest outbreak areas within Brazil. if I was staying the whole time in sao paolo I might be ok, but the coastal outbreak area is pretty extensive and covers the area I have to travel through by road to reach Santos where my cruise departs from. it also covers the coastal areas for my 2nd and 3rd port of call. Even if I don't actually stray in to the area most at risk, i can't guarantee that i won't come into someone who has not been immunised who has. Don't care how much the vaccination will be, I'm just not prepared to take risks with my health. being ill overseas is no fun at all and I'd prefer not to risk being hospitalized in Brazil

[AmoMondo]

It would appear that if you have an EEC passport 9which I do) you dont need a visa to enter Brazil, I'm having conflicting stories about whether I need to have evidence of having the yellow fever vaccination or not though. having just returned from an appointment at the travel clinic at my GPs, I'm definitely going to get the vaccination. All i needed to see to convince me was the map of the latest outbreak areas within Brazil. if I was staying the whole time in sao paolo I might be ok, but the coastal outbreak area is pretty extensive and covers the area I have to travel through by road to reach Santos where my cruise departs from. it also covers the coastal areas for my 2nd and 3rd port of call. Even if I don't actually stray in to the area most at risk, i can't guarantee that i won't come into someone who has not been immunised who has. Don't care how much the vaccination will be, I'm just not prepared to take risks with my health. being ill overseas is no fun at all and I'd prefer not to risk being hospitalized in Brazil

[Jade13]

VERY well written. CDC info has NOTHING to do with what an individual immigration officer in a foreign country may ask for.

 

More and more countries in SA are now asking for YF after the uncontrolled outbreak in Brazil this Spring. Uruguay (which is on a lot of cruise itineraries) now has the requirement. Whether you will be asked is a function of the SPECIFIC immigration officer doing the checking. But if you get one that asks and you do not have the YF vaccination card, what are you going to do???

 

Get the shot unless you have a medical reason NOT to get it. Then you can get a legally acceptable waiver, written by your doctor and signed off by your health dept. Your REALLY don't want to be the one person denied entry to a country and find yourself in quarantine or stuck at a police station.

 

I am calling our doctor, but do you think we need the YF shot for a one day trip to Brazil (over the border from Iguazu)? We are staying in Argentina and our flights are in and out of Argentina. On the other hand we plan to go to Peru, but it looks like it may not be until 2010 when we have more time to spend. Also, I just read one of your earlier posts and we hope to be in Hong Kong (not sure where else) in 2010 as well.

[dfb]

The entire Iguazu Falls area is in the endemic zone, regardless of which country.

http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/yellowBookCh4-YellowFever.aspx

Scroll down to near the bottom of the page for the map and for links to updated maps.

Remember that the fatality rate for yellow fever is well over 50% and there is no specific treatment for it. Prevention is really all there is to combat this very dangerous disease. Also, keep in mind that this is maybe the only disease that has International vaccination-certificate requirements for travel. So, not only is it a dangerous risk healthwise, but it is also a risk to take in not having full travel documentation coverage without that YFV certificate. I don't make recommendations lightly, I have had the shot. It is a live virus vaccination and it can make you sick. I was very sick from mine, but it wasn't life threatening and a real world exposure to YF would have been. The good news is that the vaccine/certificate is good for 10 years! Keep in mind that even if you are vaccinated against YF to wear insect repellant as the same areas usually have malaria and dengue fever among other bug-bite illnesses.

Good luck, Debbie

[lavendergal]

DH & I are going on HAL Prinsendam in Nov to the Amazon. We had the YFV and Hep A shot and took the Thyphoid pills in July and neither of us had any side effects at all. We didn't know what to expect but were quite pleasantly surprised that all went very well.

 

Good luck with your shots.:)

[AmoMondo]

DH & I are going on HAL Prinsendam in Nov to the Amazon. We had the YFV and Hep A shot and took the Thyphoid pills in July and neither of us had any side effects at all. We didn't know what to expect but were quite pleasantly surprised that all went very well.

 

Good luck with your shots.:)

Very relieved to hear that. I got my combined tetanus/diptheria and poli shot done yesterday which caused no problems and my Hep A is still valid from a previous immunisation, but i wasn't looking forward to getting the yellow fever one. Guess the fact in the UK that you have to be specially licensed to give the vaccination had me worried 9all other vaccinations you can get from your doctor). So hopefully I wont have any side effects either

[groinky]

My husband and I recently returned from Brazil.

We flew in and we went to 3 different ports and NO, we did NOT have a YF shot.

Just thought I would pass that along.

My doctor said to never get the shot unless it is absolutely necessary as it is not without ris

 

k.

That does not change the fact that Brazil will not let you into the country if you don't have the vaccine. It's their country and their rules. Brazil does not care what the CDC says. The Brazilian Health Ministry does not want to risk the chance that an unvaccinated tourist will get the disease and spread it to others in Brazil.

 

As for going for one day, nothing stops a tourist after clearing customs from changing his mind and staying a couple of extra days to go to Iguazu or Manaus where they can get infected. Customs agents are not mind readers. They don't have the time to quiz each passenger as to his intentions or as to the cities he visited in other countries. They are not going to guess whether the passenger might change his plans or whether he is lying about fututre plans. The only chance to control the entry of unvaccinated people is at customs. And that is the job of the customs agents. And the worst thing anyone can do is get into an argument with a customs agent - in any country.

 

It doesn't matter whether it makes sense or not. Brazil will not let anyone in without a YF vaccination or a medical waiver, even for one day. Even if you go from the airport to the ship, or viceversa, you need a visa and you will go through customs. So the choice is, do you want to go to Brazil or not?

[greatam]

My husband and I recently returned from Brazil.

We flew in and we went to 3 different ports and NO, we did NOT have a YF shot.

Just thought I would pass that along.

My doctor said to never get the shot unless it is absolutely necessary as it is not without ris

 

k.

 

AS previously posted, you DO NOT need YF to DIRECTLY enter Brazil from the USA, Canada, Europe. BUT if you have been in Peru, Bolivia, Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica, Venezuela, most of Africa and a few countries I forgot, you will need a YF vaccination record to enter Brazil. And if you cruise/vacation leaves from Brazil and goes to any of the above mentioned SA countries as well as Uruguay, you will need YF to enter those countries.

 

AND you STILL may be denied entry into quite a few places in Asia IF you have a Brazilian visa in your passport without a YF vaccination record. After the YF epidemic this past spring, other countries just are NOT taking the chance. If you medically CANNOT or don't want to get the shot, PLEASE get a doctor's waiver letter, go to the local health dept and have it validated. Your FUTURE travels may depend on it.

[Going Coastal]

We got our YF shots Tuesday, after all the considerations mentioned here. Not because of this particular trip since we will only be in Rio for a couple of days before boarding Mariner in January, but because several of the places on our future lists are requiring it after Brazil.

It has been two days and no problems for either of us so far.

We got them at the local health department and they $90 for each of us.

The one small hitch was that they required a note from our own doctor if we were over 60, and showed us that requirement in the Worlld Health Organization book. We both are, and luckily our favorite nurse faxed it to them quickly.

[SA Traveler]

We got our yellow fever shots today. How long before you started feeling bad? So far we're both fine but are wondering how long before we can feel sure we aren't going to have a reaction.

 

We'll be on the Mariner too - from Port Canaveral to LA.

[dfb]

Day 3 for me. I developed the target rash and fever and headache and body aches. Lasted to maybe day 6 or 7. Debbie

[SA Traveler]

Debbie, thanks for the info about your reaction to the shot. We're both still fine on day 2. Hopefully day 3 will be OK too!

[marazul]

SA,

you may get lucky. We had them almost 2 weeks ago and had no side effects at all. The doctor who gave them to us said most people have no problems.

M

[DD]

We had them on Tuesday. We both have felt crappy ever since -- muscle aches, fever, pain, flu-like symptoms. I'd still recommend them, but we definitely had reactions. We're in our 40s and are in good health.

[ricki]

We had ours on Election Day, still have a bit of a headache and a sore arm. No fever thank goodness!

 

Those who are feeling punk--hope you feel better soon!

 

Ricki

[debsjc]

greatam - Thanks for all the information - I think I have understood this correctly, but would appreciate it if you could confirm.

 

We are flying into Rio from the UK to pick up the start of our cruise, we won't be visiting any area in Brazil that is considered a Yellow Fever risk area, just Rio and then the cruise stops at Sao Paulo for the day (although I do understand they is a small risk even in these areas, the Uk heath authoritys do not suggest getting the jab just for Rio)

 

The cruise then goes onto Uruguay, Argentina and Chile.

If we do not get the Yellow Fever vaccination is it likely we will not be able to leave the ship in Uruguay?

[greatam]

greatam - Thanks for all the information - I think I have understood this correctly, but would appreciate it if you could confirm.

 

We are flying into Rio from the UK to pick up the start of our cruise, we won't be visiting any area in Brazil that is considered a Yellow Fever risk area, just Rio and then the cruise stops at Sao Paulo for the day (although I do understand they is a small risk even in these areas, the Uk heath authoritys do not suggest getting the jab just for Rio)

 

The cruise then goes onto Uruguay, Argentina and Chile.

If we do not get the Yellow Fever vaccination is it likely we will not be able to leave the ship in Uruguay?

 

You may not even be able to board the ship. Have you checked the ship's requirements for YF for your itinerary???

 

It is my understanding both from anecdotal experience relayed to me from business associates AND information on the WHO website that Uruguay is now REQUIRING YF or the exemption waiver if you have been in a YF country prior to arriving Uruguay.

 

While some will argue that you MUST be in an endemic area for the YF requirement to apply, how is any immigration officer to determine EXACTLY where you have been in a specific country??? By following the yellow areas on the CDC and WHO maps, which change as outbreaks occur??? Not a very reliable method. As posted previously, a sophisticated border officer MAY realize that you were on a cruise ship and the chances of contracting YF are slim. BUT Do you really want to take the chance????

[DD]

From the CDC's website: "Although yellow fever is not a disease risk in Uruguay, the government REQUIRES (I added the caps) travelers arriving from countries where yellow fever is present to present proof of yellow fever vaccination. If you will be traveling to one of these countries where yellow fever is present before arriving in Uruguay, this requirement must be taken into consideration."

 

Despite this, which I think is pretty clear, the cruise line that I'm on says that we don't need the YF vac. We got it anyway as we'll be going to Iguazu Falls post cruise, and it's clearly in the endemic zone.

 

Why not visit an official travel clinic and get their take on it? I trust them far quicker than the cruise line's res agent. We're doing Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. Our doctor recommended YF, Typhoid, and Hep A. She also recommended anti-malarial (Malarone) for 2 days prior to the falls, the time we're at the falls, and 7 days after.

[greatam]

From the CDC's website: "Although yellow fever is not a disease risk in Uruguay, the government REQUIRES (I added the caps) travelers arriving from countries where yellow fever is present to present proof of yellow fever vaccination. If you will be traveling to one of these countries where yellow fever is present before arriving in Uruguay, this requirement must be taken into consideration."

 

Despite this, which I think is pretty clear, the cruise line that I'm on says that we don't need the YF vac. We got it anyway as we'll be going to Iguazu Falls post cruise, and it's clearly in the endemic zone.

 

Why not visit an official travel clinic and get their take on it? I trust them far quicker than the cruise line's res agent. We're doing Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. Our doctor recommended YF, Typhoid, and Hep A. She also recommended anti-malarial (Malarone) for 2 days prior to the falls, the time we're at the falls, and 7 days after.

 

You are correct about the REQUIREMENT. If you leave from Rio and travel to Uruguay, you MUST have the vaccination. IF you go from Valparaiso to Rio, NO YF needed. Cruise lines can be pretty dumb. I can't wait to see an entire ship bypassing Uruguay due to the relatively NEW (May 2008) REQUIREMENT and they didn't notify their passengers.

 

I ALWAYS tell everyone to get the YF shot OR the medical waiver if you don't want to spend the money or REALLY have a medical reason not to get it. You just never know what immigration officer anyplace in the world will ask for it. Lots of people trying to get into China for the Olympics were turned around and sent back to Hong Kong to get the shot. Ruined quite a few trips, as vaccine was in very limited supply in Hong Kong.

 

Do they have travel clinics in the UK???? debsjc is from the UK, she noted the UK health authority take on YF shots. UK citizens do not need a Brazilian visa, so no requirement there.