Do you think Cornwall will be 'open' in July?

[NoSoapAndGory]

Hi all.

A purely speculative post to gauge opinions, as I know we don't know, don't have a crystal ball, etc etc.

We have booked a self catering holiday cottage near Bude for the first 10 days of July. We live in the South East, so it's about 5 hours drive to get there on a good day. We have a dog so would need to stop at a service station at least once.

As part of general future-focused conversation, DH and I are ruminating about

1: will we be 'allowed' to go
2: if we are, would we want to anyway?
3: if it's 'allowed', will the Bude community welcome us or hate us?
4: will the tourist industry want revenue or not?

Etc. Etc. Etc.

Anyone else having similar discussions, and if so, what are you thinking?

I agree Diloves, but I think the problem is less that holidays are unnecessary - unnecessary fun things also support the economy - but, as you say, a second wave of the virus, particulary if it overwhelms parts of the country with limited healthcare resources.

As for Londoners moaning about tourists, I got the tube every morning, crammed in during rush hour with tourists and suitcases, and it never bothered me one bit. Live and let live.

It delights me to see so many people enjoying visiting the place I call home. If it bothers you, you can always move somewhere less crowded.

And part of me feels a bit like that about other tourist-packed places of the world. For people who don't like it, maybe it's time to find somewhere to live that isn't rammed with tourists half the year. It's a peculiar kind of selfishness that wants to move somewhere picturesque and then shop everyone away to keep it all to yourself.

I do understand those posters who are mainly welcoming but worried about the "one hospital". However the language of "stay away, don't bring the virus with you" is verging on medieval. Perhaps you should issue visitors with a bell on entry so you can shrink out of their way?

I don’t think so, personally. We live in Devon, just over an hour from Bude, and we have a friends caravan that we stay in regularly down there. We were booked for the last week of July but between both families don’t think it’ll possible - and even if we are allowed, the first thing everyone is going to do is flock to Cornwall so I’m not sure I fancy being there with half the country all sharing the same space

This may happen to some extent as we do live in a mobile world but it’s interesting that you don’t generally get eg Londoners up in arms that visitors from Devon, Manchester or wherever will ‘bring’ Covid 19 to London.

You are missing the point about lack of access to hospital facilities.

If you live somewhere that is hours from the nearest hospital, and even further to the nearest hospital with e.g. an oncology department, you tend to worry a bit more about hospitals.

We've booked a holiday down that direction for the start of July, but I'm hoping it gets cancelled. It may be the case that some travelling is allowed by then, but if it's limited, I'd rather leave the roads clear for people who're going to visit relatives etc rather than us who can holiday next year.

We are booked then too. We wont go if not allowed but if restrictions are eased then we will.

And there is a real risk that if your neighbour goes on holiday to Cornwall and stays somewhere where social distancing restrictions haven't been followed, they will bring Covid 19 back to London.

Also quite possible that somebody from Cornwall could transmit the virus to other people in a London theatre.

That is why both Cornish hotels and London theatres are currently closed.

Offered Some on this thread (and similar ones) seem to think they, and only they, are entitled to protection from Covid. Only where they are in Cornwall or other rural areas, are hospitals unable to cope with widespread Covid. No matter that London and other hard hit areas clearly can't cope either. (Or else we wouldn't be seeing seriously ill patients turned away from hospital with some later dying at home.) It's certainly not a problem unique to rural places. And as you say, infected people brought it to London and other cities. It didn't magically appear one day. Some of the "spreaders" might even have been from Cornwall - day or business trips to cities or returning from holidays through the airports.

Hopefully these posters represent only a minority of their fellow residents. I'm sure there are plenty of lovely open welcoming people from Cornwall, and other rural parts of the UK.

It’s not just about coronavirus. I live in the Peak District and Derbyshire police have been ridiculed for shaming people out on the Edges. People were coming out with the stupid ‘well there’s loads of space on the moors for social distance.’ Erm, yes but people regularly, in the best of times, fall off the rocks, trip, break bones etc. The weather here can change in a heartbeat and then we have idiots in shorts and t shirts stuck in thick fog out on a peat moor, so searchers have to go out from our villages - which we all want to do right now 😏 We can’t get ambulances up Kinder Scout so it’s mountain rescue or air ambulance.

Not to mention the fires. There is currently a huge moorland fire raging near Glossop which is tying up the fire service as well.

Places like Bakewell, Castleton and Hathersage are suffering from loss of tourism but we all understand that you can’t come and probably won’t be able to this year. I’m sure Cornwall and Devon residents feel the same.

@FelicisNox

Anyway, who cares about flipping Cornwall? Some of us have spent 3 x as much on holidays to spain/Caribbean/America etc.

I literally cannot even begin to describe the pointlessness of this statement.

@cloudspotter

For people who don't like it, maybe it's time to find somewhere to live that isn't rammed with tourists half the year. It's a peculiar kind of selfishness that wants to move somewhere picturesque and then shop everyone away to keep it all to yourself.

Oh yes....it really is selfish isn't it, to not want to give up roots, family, friends, childhood memories and the honour of living in one of the most beautiful parts of the UK just so Sharon and her brood can enjoy the beach without us annoying locals

Anyway, who cares about flipping Cornwall? Some of us have spent 3 x as much on holidays to spain/Caribbean/America etc.

One of the best holidays I've ever had was in Cornwall. A week spent in Mousehole and visiting the surrounding areas and seeing some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. I would say you should try is sometime @FelicisNox but please don't, leave it for us who appreciate it.

I work in one of the hospitals down here and we are currently looking at how we can restart some aspects of the nhs services moving forward but it's at the back of everyone's minds that the summer influx will destroy all the work we've done.

We just don't have the infrastructure to deal with an influx of cases and our population is SO SO elderly. It's running rife through care homes already.

The Exeter nightingale isn't being built. There will be some other smaller facility for all of Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Dorset but no plans as to where or when that will be built. It just isn't enough to cope with tourism as well.

We do actually live in Cornwall, and unlike most, we are not driven by tourism. Whether the tourists visit, or don't, makes bugger all difference to my life, apart from extra traffic on the road. But we are not in the part of Cornwall that sells scenery and film sets. This area is mostly inhabited by residents, some Cornish and many not. There are holiday homes here, just not a lot, so the balance is quite delicate but generally positive.

However the language of "stay away, don't bring the virus with you" is verging on medieval.

How? It's just saying that hoards of tourists flocking to one area which hasn't had much exposure to the virus yet may not be a good idea.

I am happy to welcome the tourists back but if tens of thousands of people appear at once it may overwhelm the resources which area already stretched due to covid 19.

No matter that London and other hard hit areas clearly can't cope either

London hospitals will also be hit if everyone starts travelling all over the place.

No matter that London and other hard hit areas clearly can't cope either.

And they would break down completely if the local population multiplied by 5.

This isn't Cornwall against London. It's about the specific situation created by large numbers of people moving to another area during a pandemic.

Anywhere that attracts lots of tourists will just become a mixing zone for germs from all over the country, which will then be taken back home all over the country. It will be bad for all areas. It's not going to be allowed to happen.

My view is that there will come a tipping point at which Boris will start looking over his shoulder at all those Tory party donors and ambitious cabinet ministers who so desperately want to restart the economy and he will cave. Tourism is good for the economy and tourism is most buoyant in summer months. People will not be holidaying abroad, so even more money back into UK coffers if people holiday in the UK. Early July is touch and go, but I definitely reckon that summer tourism will be an opportunity too big to resist to kick start the economy again. Which is why Dominic Cummings is attending SAGE meetings. The time will come when we will be told that, surprise surprise, everything in the garden is rosy again and we can once again frolic in fields of sunshine - providing it is in the UK.

My view is that there will come a tipping point at which Boris will start looking over his shoulder at all those Tory party donors and ambitious cabinet ministers who so desperately want to restart the economy and he will cave

He can't, any subsequent resurgence of the virus means more deaths that can clearly be put on his decision to relax restrictions.

As I've said above, I holiday as often as I can in Cornwall. The point a lot of us are trying to make is:

Where I live in East Midlands, also a tourist destination, I live within an hour of approximately 10 major city hospitals.

In Cornwall, from most areas, you will be an hour from a total of 1, yes ONE, hospital.

Personally, I will be gutted to not go to Cornwall this year, have already had one holiday there postponed to next year. I basically live for my trips there. BUT I understand if we cant, it will be for the good of my health and others too.

Less people mixing = less chance of transmission!

All locals, I know there, are friendly people and welcome us every year.

Merrymouse Part the reason London and other cities are suffering so badly during the pandemic is because of large numbers of other people having moved there at some point pre-pandemic. The high density housing is one of the major facilitators of the spread, and poor living conditions increase the chances of developing poor health (making somemore more at risk from Covid).

I love the diversity in cities but I was responding to those posters, not necessarily you, who were suggesting it was uniquely Cornwall (and other rural spots) that would suffer from a Covid outbreak. It's also the case that people are still travelling into London. There's finally talk of quarantining new arrivals but up until now flights have been arriving daily at city airports with no checks whatsoever. I agree it not about Cornwall vs Cities.

We're all in this together. For now it's far safer in Cornwall than it is London. Let's hope that continues. Spreading the misery helps no-one. It's unfortunate for the tourist economy of course and I hope some form of support or help can be given.

• @cloudspotter Some of us were born in Cornwall, not everyone here moved down for the scenery. It's a place where real people live & work, it's not a holiday park.

Just wondering if London will have all the overseas visitors this year. That will not be fun for them.

Back in January and February the government shouldn't have let daily flights from Wuhan to London continue (at least not without checks). The way things are now overseas visitors are more at risk from London than the other way round!

It's a shame but I don't see tourism anywhere starting up properly until next year.

Personally I wouldn't want to travel from my city to a less affected area (save an emergency). I'd be mortified at the thought of possibly spreading Covid. The only possiblity for this year is if it turns out we definitely do have immunity after catching it - and we manage to find accurate tests to confirm whether or not someone's had it.

He can't, any subsequent resurgence of the virus means more deaths that can clearly be put on his decision to relax restrictions.

He faffed around with herd immunity theory. He delayed and procrastinated. His government failed to test and trace on the scale needed to keep infections low, is unlikely to meet its new 100,000 tests per day target. His government failed to protect frontline NHS staff with sufficient PPE. And still the people worship him like a hero because he got Covid and survived. He can literally do anything he wants because people go silly for a lovable buffoon who has recovered from serious illness, and takes back stewardship just in time to begin announcing a relaxation of the measures they're growing tired of in order to save the country from decades of poverty. Mark my words, it will happen.