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?

^It's not about bolting the door to protect ourselves, it's about minimising the summer influx that more than doubles our population over a 6-8 week period, which risks a huge surge in cases.
I'm sure it's similar in the Lakes, Cotswolds etc.^

It’s similar in many places hence the absurdity.

The idea that you can bolt the door on the rest of the country to protect yourself is absurd no matter where you live.

It's not just about protecting Cornwall.

If millions of people head off to Cornwall and other tourist hotspots and share hotels, campsites, and holiday cottages and then head back home, the rest of the country will be at risk too.

Perhaps in 6 months many businesses will have adapted and worked out how to be profitable within social distancing restrictions, perhaps hospitals will have improved treatment protocols so that the virus isn't so dangerous, even without a vaccine or cure.

However peak summer tourism season starts in 2 months.

It’s similar in many places hence the absurdity.

But this is a thread about Cornwall because the OP booked a holiday in Bude.

Tatiana yep, if everyone stays in their home region then it will hopefully help spread cases out across the country and over time, rather than focusing large peaks on certain places at certain times.

You really think everyone is going to stay in their home region for the next 2 years? Until sufficient people are vaccinated (60-80% of the population.)?

But this is a thread about Cornwall because the OP booked a holiday in Bude.

And the poster was saying that other places are similar, which is true. Cornwall isn’t some special case.

You really think everyone is going to stay in their home region for the next 2 years?

It's difficult to know what we will be allowed to do in anything beyond the immediate future, because at the moment, without large scale testing, we have very little data on the virus.

Yes it is possible that this virus keeps coming back, but even without a cure or vaccine in a year's time we will know more about who is at risk and the strategies required to control it. We won't have that in two month's time.

Well that's what this whole discussion on this thread is about isn't it, whether people will do it or not, and what the impacts will be.

Tourist destinations like Cornwall are special cases, because they are often rural places with poor infrastructure and vulnerable populations which would be disproportionately impacted by an influx of visitors.
The Lakes, the Broads, Wales, the Highlands, Devon - all similar impacts. That's what we're talking about for 630+ posts.
The OP was about Cornwall, that's why it is being referred to more often than other places.

For those of us with dogs, it must be the most anti dog place in the UK. We found eating in any pub was extortionately expensive and dogs were not welcome anywhere

Really? Maybe I will go there after all (not in 2020, don't worry). Not because of the extortionate prices, but dog-free pubs.

Really Cornwall is anti dog, North Wales is pro dogs, especially Anglesey dogs tucked under tables everywhere.

You have surprised me

puffin that information is from one person's holiday in 1981.

Caveat emptor.

Sorry puffin not many dog-free pubs or cafes that I can think of. Quite a few dog-free beaches.

@Ihaventgottimeforthis

Exactly - ‘all similar impacts’. Cornwall is not a special case out of all the tourist areas in the U.K. All will have to accommodate influx of people over the next 2 years.

The government will not shut Cornwall for safety. We will all have to get used to living with a higher risk level than we are used to.

@Lincolnfield, I don't recall ever finding a pub that wouldn't allow the dog in, even when we had 2 dogs, they were invariably welcome. A surprising number of cafes allow dogs, as well.

They often get offered dog treats, too.

But as I said upthread, we tend to stay off the beaten track and avoid the hot spots.

@BubblesBuddy, I love the way so many beaches allow dogs all the year round.

One of the reasons we like it is because it is so dog-friendly.

So we decided to bite the bullet and have booked a 'fingers crossed' week in Newquay for mid August. We booked with the same holiday company we used at Easter - we had no problems getting a refund when our Easter booking couldn't go ahead, and they are still applying the same policy, so at least we're not risking any money. But if the restrictions do change, then at least we've got something booked. I think its 50/50 whether we'll be able to go or not.

I'm just hoping the locals don't chase us away with pitchforks …..

@Zomblie, that's exactly the area we like, too.

We've spent many a happy hour sitting in the sun by the war memorial in St Just, eating a pasty from the butchers and watching the world go by.

It also has an excellent little hardware shop, which is very handy when you need to do running repairs on an elderly motorhome. It's a running joke in our house, when we've been to Homebase and B&Q and not been able to get what we want, that we'll have to pop down to St Just (330 miles) as they're bound to have it.

@LakieLady, yes! We have seriously considered driving across the country to get decent fish and chips from Sennen before when our local inland fish and chip shops have disappointed us!

Have you been down to Cape Cornwall? We holidayed in the glorious Cove Cottage which is right by the car park last year and the little cottage up the track, Wheal Call, the year before. It's my happy place.

Tricky one isn't it. I live in Cornwall and totally get the concern here - elderly population, one crappy hospital (not criticising the staff by the way!). But. I want to visit my son who lines in a Scottish city as soon as I can. Should I be allowed if I'm returning home to cornwall and possibly bringing with me the gift of the virus? It does seem like a tricky thing to enforce travel restrictions into one particular region, when the residents of that region may pose as much risk if they're allowed out!

So even if cornwall does open and it seems abit better come July, would we not be made to feel welcome?

There appear to be lots of smaller hospitals in Cornwall having looked at the NHS list. There are also hospitals in Devon and even the private one takes nhs patients. It’s really not as if everyone dies young in Cornwall due to lack of care is it?

No. I suspect some people won’t welcome you in July. The Keep Out mantra may still be going strong and ruining business at the same time.

Bubbles I think it's about the number of ICU beds. And we have, I think, 13 in the whole of cornwall. And a very elderly population. I think that's what makes COVID an especial problem here

hospitals; the problem for Cornwall in particular, but the entirety of Devon too is the geography. Sure, there may be only one hospital in lots of regions of England with a similar population; but most have another neighbouring area they can re-direct to. If you're ill in Cornwall and Treliske is full, it's Plymouth, then Torquay, then Exeter. The chain of that is complex and challenging for managing healthcare.

Also; there seems to be a sort of "oh well, everyone has got to catch it at some point" attitude. This simply isn't true. We need to get over this outbreak and then get back down to numbers where we can test, contact trace and isolate in the community. That's how infectious diseases are managed. (don't get me started on why that wasn't what happened and how on earth we got into the idea of "herd immunity").

Finally; Derriford really is ok. someone mentioned up thread that people were asked to bring their own sheets to give birth. I've had a baby there (and worked there) and this hasn't been a thing.

Oh; @BubblesBuddy it's not the number of hospitals you need to look at - it's the type of care they provide. the main hospital is in Truro and is an acute trust; there is a much much smaller hospital in Penzance and several "community hospitals" which normally provide rehab type care.

Lots of care has been shifted about and is being provided in different places due to trying to have enough Covid and ICU beds at the moment.

I'm torn on this. I live in Cornwall and work in hospitality. On one hand I definitely can see how having a high elderly population and one main hospital is very worrying should coronavirus cases increase once the tourists return. Cornish people can indeed go to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth - indeed, I have an appointment there myself next week.

However, if Cornwall remains shut all summer the economic impact will be catastrophic. The business I work for will go bust without a shadow of a doubt as will hundreds of others. Tourists are the lifeblood of the county, like it or not, and many more people benefit indirectly from tourism. Supermarkets in some areas are very seasonal and employ staff to cope with demand, these jobs won't exist for a while. Tradesmen do a lot of work within the holiday industry, no tourists, demand will drop and many may go out of business. I'm saddened to see some of the vitriol on social media towards tourists. I've been speaking to people due to come to Cornwall this year who are already feeling unwelcome and saying that they may not visit again.

In no way do I want Cornwall to be overwhelmed with visitors potentially bringing the virus with them, but there does need to be some balance so that the effects of this do not drag the area, which already has high unemployment and low wages, down even further. What this might be and how this might work in practice though, I have no idea. I'm very scared for the future at the moment.