Atlantic Bubble

The Atlantic Bubble (French: Bulle de déplacement des provinces de l'Atlantique) was a special travel-restricted area created on July 3, 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada. The area was an agreement between the four Atlantic Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador which allowed unrestricted travel among provincial residents and restricts travel from Canadians who are residents of outside provinces. Residents wishing to travel to the Atlantic Bubble are subjected to screening and are required to quarantine for 14 days before moving freely throughout the bubble. Individual provinces have specific rules toward travellers from outside of Atlantic Canada. The provinces in the bubble have seen the lowest numbers of COVID-19 compared to other Canadian provinces throughout the pandemic.

The area was suspended on November 26, 2020, due to a second wave of COVID-19 cases across Canada. The Council of Atlantic Premiers confirmed the bubble would resume April 19, 2021, but later postponed the date to May 3, 2021, due to an increase in cases due to the third wave of the virus. Following a travel ban on outside travellers in PEI and Nova Scotia, the reopening date was postponed indefinitely. In late May 2021, plans for the reopening of the bubble were announced by some of the provinces, with various possible reopening dates. However, each province has their own reopening plans which include allowing travel from outside the Atlantic region and no consensus has been made between the four provinces, leaving the fate of the bubble unclear.

Following mass-vaccinations across the country, the Atlantic Bubble had a reiteration in June 2021. Free travel is allowed between the provinces generally speaking, with the exception of Prince Edward Island, who require at least partial vaccination (one-dose) to enter the province. Each province has their own rules on outside travellers from other provinces in Canada - fully vaccinated travellers (both-doses) are allowed to enter each province freely without quarantine.