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Yellow fever Voyage Tips and guide

You can check the original Wikivoyage article Here

    Yellow fever is a potentially fatal tropical disease caused by a virus that is transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. Illness ranges in severity from an influenza-like syndrome to severe hepatitis and hemorrhagic fever. Yellow fever can be prevented by vaccination. Travellers to areas with yellow fever transmission should take precautions against exposure to mosquitoes.

    This is an article about health issues. While contributors do their best, we cannot take account of your individual health needs. Consult your doctor for individual medical advice.

    Understand

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    Countries where yellow fever is endemic - with CDC vaccination recommendation (may be abbreviated) as of 2017 in brackets - are below. "High-risk" travellers are a small fraction of travellers whose travel plans or lifestyle expose them to more mosquito bites than average.


    Africa

    CDC map of yellow fever-endemic zones in Africa in 2009.
    Country Traveller's Age Additional Comments
    Angola over 9 mo.
    Benin over 9 mo.
    Burkina Faso over 9 mo.
    Burundi over 9 mo.
    Cameroon over 9 mo.
    Central African Republic over 9 mo.
    Chad over 9 mo. going to areas south of the Sahara
    Congo: Democratic Republic of the Congo over 9 mo.
    Congo: Republic of the Congo over 9 mo.
    Côte d'Ivoire over 9 mo.
    Equatorial Guinea over 9 mo.
    Eritrea only high-risk travellers in certain areas
    Ethiopia over 9 mo. not recommended for travellers who are not high-risk whose itinerary is limited to Afar and Somali provinces
    Gabon over 9 mo.
    The Gambia over 9 mo.
    Ghana over 9 mo.
    Guinea over 9 mo.
    Guinea-Bissau over 9 mo.
    Kenya over 9 mo. cities of Nairobi and Mombasa and certain other areas have lower risk of transmission
    Liberia over 9 mo.
    Mali over 9 mo. going to areas south of the Sahara
    Mauritania over 9 mo. going to areas south of the Sahara
    Niger over 9 mo. going to areas south of the Sahara
    Nigeria over 9 mo.
    Rwanda only for high-risk travellers
    Sao Tome and Principe only for high-risk travellers
    Senegal over 9 mo.
    Sierra Leone over 9 mo.
    Somalia only for high-risk travellers and only in certain regions
    South Sudan over 9 mo.
    Sudan over 9 mo. going to areas south of the Sahara outside of Khartoum
    Tanzania over 9 mo. only for high-risk travellers
    Togo over 9 mo.
    Uganda over 9 mo.


    Central America & South America

    CDC map of yellow fever-endemic zones in the Americas in 2009.
    Country Traveller's Age Additional Comments
    Argentina over 9 mo. going to Corrientes and Misiones province, including Iguazú Falls. Recommended for high-risk travellers going to Formosa province and parts of Chaco, Jujuy, and Salta provinces.
    Bolivia over 9 mo. travelling to certain areas below 2300m that are east of the Andes
    Brazil over 9 mo. going to the endemic zone, which does not include Rio de Janeiro or São Paulo
    Colombia over 9 mo. Not recommended if your itinerary is limited to Bogotá and San Andrés y Providencia department. If your trip is limited to these places and Barranquilla, Cali, Cartagena, and Medellín, the risk is lower and vaccines are only recommended for high-risk travellers
    Ecuador over 9 mo. who are travelling to certain areas east of the Andes Mountains or for high-risk travellers in certain areas west of the Andes
    French Guiana over 9 mo.
    Guyana over 9 mo.
    Panama over 9 mo. travelling east of the canal zone
    Paraguay over 9 mo. outside of Asunción
    Peru over 9 mo. travelling to many areas, especially east of the Andes Mountains; not recommended for travellers whose itinerary is limited to Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu, the Inca Trail, and areas above 2300 meters.
    Suriname over 9 mo.
    Trinidad and Tobago over 9 mo. only if going to dense forests on Trinidad
    Venezuela over 9 mo. except if only travelling to certain parts of the northern coastal area

    Vaccination

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    A vaccine is available which provides immunity for at least ten years. Many countries will require that you be vaccinated against yellow fever if you are coming from a country where it is present or have been in such a country within the last 6 days (the incubation period). If this is the case you will need to present a "World Health Organization International Certificate of Vaccination" with an appropriately dated certification on the "International Certificate of Vaccination or Revaccination Against Yellow Fever" page to immigration officials. This little yellow booklet will be given to you when you are vaccinated against yellow fever for the first time, which is valid for life. Carry it with your passport: you'll typically present them to immigration officials at the same time.

    It is generally easiest to get a yellow fever vaccination in your home country before you leave on your trip. The vaccination is not in the normal vaccination schedules of many countries outside the infected areas since it is unnecessary unless you are travelling and has a somewhat higher risk of complications than many other vaccines. You will need to especially request a yellow fever vaccination from a designated yellow fever vaccination center. Immunity is considered to start 10 days from the time of the vaccination, so be sure to get vaccinated 10 days before you enter an infected country. The vaccine is live and not entirely inactive: many people have mild flu-like symptoms for a couple of days after receiving this vaccine, so it would be good not to be planning anything strenuous in those days.

    Depending on how the vaccine is cultivated, you may need to allow about half an hour for a yellow fever vaccination as you will be observed for an allergic reaction after it is administered.

    Vaccination requirements

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    Front Cover of International Certification of Vaccination

    Some countries have mandatory yellow fever vaccination requirements. The exact requirements vary from country to country and may also vary from time to time. The following is a list of countries and territories which had yellow fever vaccination requirements as of 2017 according to the CDC. Countries requiring proof of vaccination upon arrival from all other countries (as opposed to only upon arrival from endemic countries) for all travellers more than one year old are marked below.

    Among countries that require it upon arrival from endemic zones, some exclude a few individual countries or regions from this requirement, so look up the details for your specific destination or destinations. Some even require the vaccine if you change planes in an endemic country, even if you don't leave the airport. Others don't count airport layovers, or only care about them if they are longer than a certain number of hours.

    Country Proof of Vaccination
    Afghanistan from endemic zones
    Albania from endemic zones
    Algeria from endemic zones
    Angola always
    Antigua and Barbuda from endemic zones
    Australia from endemic zones
    Bahamas from endemic zones
    Bahrain from endemic zones
    Bangladesh from endemic zones
    Barbados from endemic zones
    Belize from endemic zones
    Benin from endemic zones
    Bhutan from endemic zones
    Bolivia from endemic zones
    Bonaire from endemic zones
    Botswana from endemic zones
    Brazil from Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
    Brunei from endemic zones
    Burkina Faso from endemic zones
    Burundi always
    Cambodia from endemic zones
    Cameroon from endemic zones
    Cape Verde from endemic zones
    Central African Republic always
    Chad from endemic zones
    China from endemic zones (no requirement for entering Hong Kong or Macau
    Christmas Island from endemic zones
    Cocos Islands from endemic zones
    Colombia from endemic zones
    Democratic Republic

    of the Congo

    always
    Republic of the Congo always
    Cote d'Ivoire always
    Costa Rica from endemic zones
    Cuba from endemic zones
    Curaçao from endemic zones
    Djibouti from endemic zones
    Dominica from endemic zones
    East Timor from endemic zones
    Egypt from endemic zones
    El Salvador from endemic zones
    Equatorial Guinea from endemic zones
    Eritrea from endemic zones
    Eswatini from endemic zones
    Ethiopia from endemic zones
    Fiji from endemic zones
    French Guiana always
    French Polynesia from endemic zones
    Gabon always
    Gambia from endemic zones
    Ghana always
    Grenada from endemic zones
    Guadeloupe from endemic zones
    Guatemala from endemic zones
    Guinea from endemic zones
    Guinea-Bissau always
    Guyana from endemic zones
    Haiti from endemic zones
    Honduras from endemic zones
    India from endemic zones
    Indonesia from endemic zones
    Iran from endemic zones
    Iraq from endemic zones
    Jamaica from endemic zones
    Jordan from endemic zones
    Kazakhstan from endemic zones
    Kenya from endemic zones
    Kiribati from endemic zones
    Kyrgyzstan from endemic zones
    Laos from endemic zones
    Lesotho from endemic zones
    Liberia always
    Libya from endemic zones
    Madagascar from endemic zones
    Malawi from endemic zones
    Malaysia from endemic zones
    Maldives from endemic zones
    Mali always
    Malta from endemic zones
    Martinique from endemic zones
    Mauritania from endemic zones
    Mauritius from endemic zones
    Mayotte from endemic zones
    Montserrat from endemic zones
    Mozambique from endemic zones
    Myanmar from endemic zones
    Namibia from endemic zones
    Nauru from endemic zones
    Nepal from endemic zones
    Netherlands Antilles from endemic zones
    New Caledonia from endemic zones
    Niger always
    Nigeria from endemic zones
    Niue from endemic zones
    Norfolk Island from endemic zones
    North Korea from endemic zones
    Oman from endemic zones
    Pakistan from endemic zones
    Panama from endemic zones
    Paraguay from endemic zones
    Philippines from endemic zones
    Pitcairn Islands from endemic zones
    Reunion from endemic zones
    Rwanda from endemic zones
    Saba from endemic zones
    Saint Barthelemy from endemic zones
    Saint Helena (island) from endemic zones
    Saint Kitts and Nevis from endemic zones
    Saint Lucia from endemic zones
    Saint Martin from endemic zones
    Saint Vincent and the Grenadines from endemic zones
    Samoa from endemic zones
    Sao Tome and Principe from endemic zones
    Saudi Arabia from endemic zones
    Senegal from endemic zones
    Seychelles from endemic zones
    Sierra Leone always
    Singapore from endemic zones
    Sint Eustatius from endemic zones
    Solomon Islands from endemic zones
    Somalia from endemic zones
    South Africa from endemic zones
    Sri Lanka from endemic zones
    Sudan from endemic zones
    Suriname always
    Tanzania from endemic zones
    Thailand from endemic zones
    Togo always
    Trinidad and Tobago from endemic zones
    Uganda from endemic zones
    Venezuela from Brazil
    Vietnam from endemic zones
    Zambia from endemic zones
    Zimbabwe from endemic zones
    This travel topic about Yellow fever is a usable article. It touches on all the major areas of the topic. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.


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