COVID Vaccination Tourists Flock From Colombia to New York to Get Their Shot at Safety

Colombians and other South Americans with ties to New York and the ability to scrape up enough money to travel are coming here amid vaccine shortages in their home countries. One man even got to finally meet his father.

Jonathan Steven Bolaños traveled to New York in July to find his biological father and get vaccinated against COVID-19.

The 34-year-old electrician from Colombia managed to do both.

“Here [in New York], the younger generation are the future,” Bolaños said. “My country is still lost, trying to figure out who they are and thus, can’t make up their minds on who to vaccinate first.

“The vaccine is so close but it feels so far,” he added. “Right now, they are vaccinating ages 50 and up. Who knows when my number is going to get called?”

Bolaños is among the Colombians and other South Americans with ties to New York and the ability to scrape up enough money to travel who have become vaccine tourists.

New York State does not have a plan to expand its vaccination efforts to international visitors and there are no hard statistics on the number of shot-seekers coming from abroad.

Yet anecdotal evidence points to growing numbers of people flocking to the city since May in search of securing their and their families’ well-being — and catching some sights while they’re here.

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