I’ve been writing a lot lately about countries I haven’t actually made it to yet, and I’ve found that I’ve really lucked out. So far, nobody has insisted on jabbing me with a needle before I enter a new country. But depended on where you’re headed, your story might be different.
It turns out that there are a very long list of recommended, if not required, vaccinations for some truly great locations. And depending on what part of a particular country you’re planning on visiting, a doctor might recommend a few extra. I actually received a press release recently, recommending yellow fever vaccinations heavily for travelers headed to Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay.
I have a question for you: how do you decide which vaccinations you’re going to get when you’re traveling? And how do you decide which vaccinations you don’t need?
This is long after you originally posted this – but I thought I would give my 2 cents anyway.
After checking the list of suggested vaccines, I’m deciding which ones to get based on the chance of dying if I don’t. Kind of morbid, but that’s how I look at it. Yellow fever? Sounds awful to have, and there isn’t really a good treatment for it. I’ll get that vaccine. Some countries require it, anyway – and I’d hate to be held up because I didn’t get it. Rabies? High chance of death. I’ll get that one. Swine Flu? Skipping.
The biggest one I am having issues with is malaria – I won’t be in areas that have malaria the entire trip, so I don’t want to take pills the whole time – but I don’t want malaria either…