Help! Do I cancel surprise trip?

[hoolydooly]

Sorry in advance for another coronavirus thread! Struggling with a decision and wondering if people can help me decide...

So, one week from now we are due to go on a trip to Japan, booked last September. DH and I lived there many moons ago and I booked this as a surprise - a huge surprise as we're more "camping in Cornwall" types rather than big international jetsetters! Going with 4 children in tow (youngest age 5).

Enter coronavirus. Japan has 20 cases so far. They are asking Japanese nationals they have repatriated to self-quarantine, rather than imposing quarantine as we have in the UK. Japan gets huge numbers of Chinese tourists, and has only restricted entry to those from Hubei province. According to this map (gisanddata.maps.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6) there are 5k cases elsewhere in China.

If we do go, we will be in Tokyo for a few days and will likely come into contact with a lot of travellers from China. I want to stress I am in no way being racist here (I have seen accusations of racism being bandied about on other threads). It's just a fact that there are more cases in China right now, so contact with Chinese travellers poses more of a risk.

So...now I am worried. I can't discuss with DH as he doesn't know about the trip! I really don't want to cancel. We'd get no money back, and it cost a fortune! But the thought of something happening to our children (or us) is giving me pause for thought. I suffer from health anxiety so perhaps I am worrying too much.

What do you think?

YABU = you're being silly, go and enjoy yourself
YANBU = not worth the risk - cancel your trip

If IABU, please be gentle! ;-)

Are you going OP? Personally I couldn’t but I’m a massive worrier

Are you going tomorrow? I hope you've talked it through. I wouldn't go but my DD has a heart condition and got very ill with swine flu.

The both of you need to decide.

Yes we're going!

@hoolydooly would you mind coming back and telling us what things are like out there at the moment?

@hoolydooly

Have a great time!

Do you worry this much about drunk drivers hitting you and killing you every time you get into the car?

My husband was one of 9 children. One of his brothers was killed by a drunk driver. That’s a much bigger concern to me than a virus.

Have a great time OP.

Do you worry this much about drunk drivers hitting you and killing you every time you get into the car?

Of course not, but if you knew every driver on the road was over the limit, it'd surely make you think a bit more carefully about getting in the car wouldn't it?

How was it, Hooly? I hope you had a great time.

It was great - thanks! He was very surprised...and pleased! We had a wonderful time.

Feeling slightly worried as the number of cases in Japan did increase quite a lot while we were there, but it was still only 122 cases in a population of 127 million, so I am trying to convince myself the chances we caught it are pretty low.

@justdeckingthehalls1
Things were similar to normal, in my opinion. You always get people wearing masks in Japan in the winter. There were perhaps more than usual, and it was noticeable that all service staff in hotels/airports, etc, were wearing them, but people seemed to be going on as usual. I know some events have been cancelled or scaled back. But you can't really avoid large gatherings in Tokyo as every station is a large gathering!

Thanks for the update. Glad you had a good time and you got home safely

FFS, this is getting dull now... How many virus threads are required?

Just follow the official travel advice.

Cheeserton. FFS read the thread

@Cheeserton
I echo @doodleygirl! Why bother posting such a horrible comment? This thread is a few weeks old and was asking for advice as I was planning a surprise trip. It wasn't trying to take the place of reading official travel advice.
I was just updating as some posters asked how it all went.
If you can' be bothered to read the thread, then why bother posting anything at all???

Absolutely go. Coronavirus is not the bubonic plague. My husband just got back from 2 weeks in Thailand which I believe has the second highest number of cases after China and his flight was completely booked. The chances of you getting it are so ridiculously small, and the chances of you becoming very poorly with it are even slimmer (as a healthy family of 5 - in fact children have the slimmest chance of becoming v.ill with it provided they're young and fit enough to fight it off)

Don't ruin the trip of a lifetime "just in case"

Sorry if this has spread been conveyed, but I’d want to know stats and info about healthy people getting it, and what it’s like as an illness. Wouldn’t worry for me but I’d be keen to know for my kids.

@muddypuddles12 why show yourself up as one of those people who clearly haven’t read even just the op’s posts and realise she’s been on the trip already and come back?

Ffs

Read the full thread

@SillyMoomin LOL sorry to have offended you so greatly Moomin. I am not worthy

@hoolydooly there is a program on radio 4 at 5 today about travel and booked holidays to Asia in the light of CV . You can email them on pm@ bbc.co.uk and ask, but your question will probably be covered anyway.

@Ohyesiam

The OP is already back from her trip !

Ha! Blame it on the hormones!