TUI have cancelled all flights to Spain!

[Overseasmom100]

Just read this am shocked!!

MrsSpenserGregson Yep, it really smacks of that. People's money will now stay with the travel companies and the Govt knows it.

Because the FCO is saying it's OK to travel to the Canaries and the Balearics, the travel companies / insurance won't have to compensate travellers who have holidays booked to those locations.

Which is the position we are in. Due to go this coming Saturday but there's no way we can quarantine on return so we're going to lose our money. Money that we could have used to book a UK holiday instead.

Im dreading telling my 8 year old son that the holidays he's been looking forward to isn't going ahead. He has put up with so much since March, no school, not seeing friends, no clubs, etc.

Pertella That really sucks, I'm sorry for you and your family. It doesn't matter when you booked the trip either – the fact was the Govt moved heaven and earth to tell us it was safe to fly again with their list of acceptable/exempt countries to prop up the aviation industry and people responded accordingly.

I feel sorry for anyone who booked to go before the pandemic. Personally though if I was due to travel to Spain and now could cancel and get a different date or refund, I'd be very relieved.

Anyone who has recently booked- well they took a risk by doing so. Any international travel is a big risk right now in my opinion and unless it was an absolute emergency I wouldn't be going anywhere abroad.

We have an existing booking for Cornwall that I'm nervous enough about. We know the area well though and know some of the much less popular places that are still beautiful. We tend to stick to quiet places even in normal times. If cases there start to rise though or we feel it is to crowded to be safe, we will change our plans.

thanks long

It wouldn't be as bad if we could just cancel and get our money back to book somewhere else.

We are just stuck in this limbo now. We've also booked and paid for parking and a cat sitter too, so that more money potentially down the drain.

It's ridiculous that they've included the Canaries. Their cases are much much lower but it's just all been lumped into one region. Government incompetence yet again.

Well when we booked, we did so because the advice was that it was safe to do so

So all the MN posts suggesting it was a rubbish idea because of possible lockdown or boarders closing, hospitals being full etc had no bearing on your decision?

It's ridiculous that they've included the Canaries. Their cases are much much lower

It’s lower so it’s safer for you? But is it safe for them?

So all the MN posts suggesting it was a rubbish idea because of possible lockdown or boarders closing, hospitals being full etc had no bearing on your decision?

Like I said upthread, we knew it was a risk and I'm not moaning that it hasn't paid off. But it was not absurd to take the risk based on government advice at the time. Not being an epidemiologist myself, I thought they were probably better informed than me and based on the info I had, we would have been travelling between areas with very low rates of infection.

So all the MN posts suggesting it was a rubbish idea because of possible lockdown or boarders closing, hospitals being full etc had no bearing on your decision?

Er, MN posters aren't all epidemiologists last time I checked. Plus, given how divisive this topic is, it would very hard to tell which opinion is the one worth listening to.

People really do want to live in a nanny state don’t they?

Do people really need the government to tell them they should book a holiday abroad? Are people no longer capable of using common sense?

We’re in the middle of a pandemic. Countries are only just coming out of lockdown situations, and cases are rising in some parts.

Anyone who didn’t think that booking a holiday abroad carried risks was stupid. You can’t blame the government for not using your own common sense.

It wasn’t mandatory to book a holiday you know....

This is the very reason why we had to go into lockdown. Because when people were told they shouldn’t rush to the beaches or the pubs they did so anyway.

It seems people need their hands holding throughout the process...

Booking a holiday weeks after coming out of the pandemic, to a country where wearing masks was mandatory everywhere was never going to be a good idea.

Why could people not just wait, rather than now get angry when the virus (which is still around and still in the pandemic stage) started to increase again.

Yes, wicked old TUI, eh? Following advice and acting responsibly. The rotters.

What sort of kicking would they have got if they had flown people abroad and those people had brought the virus back? Probably from the same people whining now about their holiday being cancelled.

As for this:

Thousands of people are now in limbo. Booked in good faith.

The phrase “in good faith” regularly entertains me. The people using it seldom think about what it means. In this instance, somebody booked a holiday and now can’t go but because it was “booked in good faith” - ie they booked it expecting everything to proceed as they wanted irrespective of pesky things like government advice or pandemics - they want somebody to be sorry.

Genuinely thought that it was as safe as here.

Well, now you know that it isn’t. C’est la vie.

And loads of friends in tourist and airline jobs are desperate for people to take holidays.

Yes, of course they are, because they don’t want to be furloughed or laid off - it must be difficult for cabin crew and resort staff - but TUI, who employ some of these people, have more sense.

Because the FCO is saying it's OK to travel to the Canaries and the Balearics, the travel companies / insurance won't have to compensate travellers who have holidays booked to those locations.

This is the main risk to many. No refund if you can’t quarantine and have to cancel. TUI stayed they would refund (amazed they can cover it but it was a good draw for bookings).

Stayed = said

I see the holiday police are out in force on this thread. What a shock.

I don't understand the logic behind quarantining if you can just pay for a test on return?

Because there is an incubation period where you wouldn't show up as positive. That is why people in a household with an infected person have to self isolate for 2 weeks

@chocolatesaltyballs22

I see the holiday police are out in force on this thread. What a shock.

As if there aren't enough dedicated threads to kick people whilst they are down...

I don't understand the logic behind quarantining if you can just pay for a test on return?

Where have you been for the last six months?

Why do people keep asking the same question over and over again?

@chocolatesaltyballs22

It's ridiculous that they've included the Canaries. Their cases are much much lower but it's just all been lumped into one region. Government incompetence yet again.

And how many people are going to the Canaries, including the Spanish themselves, will be spreading and picking up the virus? Islands are not immune - as the U.K. knows all too well.

The problem is quarantine rules and FCO advice aren’t joined up, they should both be all of Spain or both be mainland Spain, not one of each.

So in that case the islands should be treated the same as mainland Spain by the FCO.

As it stands at the moment, Jet2 have said they are not refunding people who are booked to the islands and are not honouring the pledge they made to not take you to destinations that require you to quarantine on return. In fact they've removed the pledge from their website but haven't yet put out a formal statement to passengers.

The air bridges (which enabled travel without the requirement to quarantine afterwards) was always based on the CV rate to the other country remaining low. Spain's has shot up in the last two weeks. It's the same for any country covered by the agreement. There's no guarantee of no quarantine for any holidays booked with an air bridge in place.
I find it surprising that folk cant work that out.
The shocker amongst this is Tui behaving decently and cancelling flights which enables customers to be refunded.

Surely this is a good thing as those that haven't gone will be able to claim their money back.

As for the rest I am more concerned for the people of Spain than those that decided to go out there in the middle of a pandemic.

@FrippEnos

Surely this is a good thing as those that haven't gone will be able to claim their money back.

As for the rest I am more concerned for the people of Spain than those that decided to go out there in the middle of a pandemic.

No, you won't be refunded if you are going to the Canaries or Balearics - at least not by Jet2 anyway.

Where can I buy shares in halo polish? That's one thing in exceptionally high demand. Could we start making it, to get this country's industry back on its feet?