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?

Get real. Iv paid hundreds to stay for a long weekend in July and I will be going.

This is the biggest "I'm all right Jack" attitude I've read on this thread. And you wonder why some local people might not welcome tourists?

Is a year at home really so bad?

A year without the week we spend with my parents would be yes, however if we can’t go away we’ll go stay at their house for a week which really won’t be a problem for anyone else.

I totally understand cornwall not wanting the virus brought in and spreading and the concern of residents given the limited health services

But the hostility to tourists is quite disappointing. They might want to make sure they don’t put people off returning when life returns to normal, I imagine tourists, much as the locals hate them, do a lot of good for the economy.

Our local beach car parks are closed.

I would think that it will be ok and also encouraged to go on holiday in the UK in July. However I wouldn’t go to Devon and Cornwall. The local attitude appears to be horrendously negative. Understandable during lockdown but less so if restrictions are eased

Is a year at home really so bad?

Depends on your home maybe. Plenty of Smug Big House and Garden Wankers on mumsnet who it might be fine for but some people live in areas with limited space around them

Not a chance. We will be lucky to get schools reopened by September. Universities are being told to have no or very little face to face teaching until January.

Cornish people (like us) also have holidays booked in the Summer. Like I mentioned earlier - ours is in the Lakes booked for August. Losing £1200 would be painful but I don’t want to piss off the locals by going.

But you are right - pleasing the locals shouldn’t come into it (and I don’t know why I’ve been worrying !!)

So if travel restrictions are lifted / eased then enjoy your holiday here and I’m sure the Cornish people will also enjoy their holidays too.

It’s such a crazy time at the moment.

But please don’t think we’re all angry farmers who shout GET OFF ME LAND. We aren’t all unfriendly asshats

I think a lot of Cornish people are just worried about Treliske being overwhelmed. It’s our only proper hospital after all

If you bring the virus with you and infect someone, we cannot cope down here if it spreads

Highly unlikely. Cornwall is much leas densely populated than other areas. Rate of infection will always be much slower and lower than say London or Birmingham

How will tourist industry survive though without tourists? Do you seriously think furlough will be extended through to 2021 or just expect all to sign on indefinitely? I'd say by summer tourist businesses in these places will welcome tourists with open arms if they allowed come.

If the government says it is okay for people to start travelling and take UK based holidays, I would expect to go and observe whatever social distancing measures are still in place.

If the government have said UK based holidays are okay, I would be pretty disappointed if locals were then hostile towards visitors who observed any social distancing.

In the end, government needs to be clear about whether UK based holidays can go ahead, especially as we get words school holidays. Thry will base what they say on the scientific evidence.....and then the rest of us need to follow what they say.

It won't be acceptable for people to travel if the government has said don't, but likewise it really won't be great if the government says it's now okay and locals are hostile to visitors. It does cut both ways.

I think there's a big difference between "hating" tourists and finding them a nuisance and having a bit of a moan in the season. Do you think all the residents of other holiday destinations are ecstatic to see the holidaymakers? They're not really.

As the current restrictions are lifted or reduced movement will increase although total eradication. Here in Ireland it is predicted that there could be three to six further surges of small outbreak clusters so restrictions might be reinstated to control these. Personally I think it would be wise for people to expect to travel locally but mass movement for holidays etc. is unlikely to be hassle free for sometime. The U.K. has a much higher population and more ports, airports so I would imagine the likelihood of cluster outbreaks to be higher. Unfortunately life as we knew it will take a while to return. I would plan on not going if I were you.

I can’t see that the tourists would overwhelm the hospital since most of them would only visit for a week and presumably wouldn’t travel to a remote setting atm when unwell - any tourist hospital visits would presumably be for accidents, heart attacks etc rather than the virus. The more concerning issue may be what fresh cases tourists may inadvertently bring with them.

I would say July is a bit too soon. It’s not that far away when you think about it. I’m no expert but I doubt it’ll be safe to do so.

Cornwall has one of the lowest covid rates. A drastic increase in population could increase cases.

As for people saying many of our businesses won’t survive. Sadly that is true. But it doesn’t mean it’s right for people to visit here. Health first!

I don't think residents will be given the option of deciding whether or not they want visitors.

Wales and Scotland have both published their plans for lifting restrictions and it's likely that the UK plans will be similar. They rely on the ability to monitor carefully and tighten restrictions if the infection rate is increasing.

You can't do that if the UK population is travelling all over the place in 3 month's time. The problem wouldn't just be people bringing the virus to Cornwall, but bringing it back from Cornwall to their homes.

I’d be curious to find out if the aforementioned Exeter Nightingale would allay the understandable concerns about clinical capacity for residents of both Cornwall & Devon.

If a Nightingale ‘field Hospital’ can go up in a matter of a few weeks, then in theory, if the Five Tests’ are passed, the Government lock down can be lifted in time for the school holiday season. Maybe the season will shunt to start in August & run through to late September to optimise the flattening of the NHS curve.

We are booked for the West Country later this year, I’d really love to go.If the lockdown is lifted, the trains are running & the cottage is open, then I want to spend time there & spend my hard earned bucks in the local shops. BUT I would have reservations & qualms about potentially being a COVID-19 vector particularly if I thought NHS provision for serious health problems was limited.

I doubt that I would be in need of such intensive medical support, because in the first place I would not travel if I were unwell, & with social distancing & good hygiene I am less likely to contract the virus. If the Exeter Nightingale is up & running, I’d be less perturbed.

As much is rapidly being learned about the management of severe COVID-19 cases, we can all hope that treatment becomes less intensive & less invasive.

I live in Cornwall and as much as our economy will need tourism to survive we have to be really mindful that we only have 1 hospital and it just won’t cope with an influx of tourists if we are still in this situation.

When the Gov decides it's policy for Uk travel and holidays over the summer (especially school holidays) they will factor in things like hospital provision in holiday areas and numbers who will be expected to travel to those areas, esp considering foreign holidays are unlikely.

So, if the gov says it is okay to go and the country can manage, I think we should trust them - and that includes local in holiday areas trusting it too and not being offensive to visitors. However, if they say travel still isn't okay, of course it's not okay to go, regardless of money spent.

I had to pay the balance for a self catering holiday in Devon for July last week. I paid it because I was told that if travel and holidays are not permissible I would get a refund. I understand that I might be able to go or might not and will just have to wait and see. I accept that if we get to go, it will be a rather different holiday and some form of social distancing will probably be in place. I hope to go because we've looked forward to it, but if we can't it will just be one of those things.

I don't think anyone needs to get so exercised about it all.....just wait and see what government says about it and follow what they say.

(I know Wales and Scotland are in the UK, it's just that we don't have an rUK parliament)

The government have already made it abundantly clear that we shouldnt be thinking about summer holidays. In answer to your questions

1: will we be 'allowed' to go - no.
2: if we are, would we want to anyway? - once it opens accommodation will be the last thing to open so everything else should be up and running.
3: if it's 'allowed', will the Bude community welcome us or hate us? Half and half I would think.
4: will the tourist industry want revenue or not? Of course it will but it wont want to have a spike in the infection because once it opens up hoards will be down there and probably not being that responsible either.

Personally i dont think that there will be any travel in the UK until mid to late Summer - end of August and I really, really hope there is a travel ban on foreign travel (however much that inconveniences me in terms of family visits etc) until this time next year.

the virus doesnt spread. people spread it. it came in because people brought it with them

Highly unlikely. Cornwall is much less densely populated than other areas. Rate of infection will always be much slower and lower than say London or Birmingham

We also have high elderly population, lots of care homes and retirement villages, so whilst the spread would be slower etc the people who would get will either die in their care homes etc or have to go to Treliske or Plymouth.... and there are larger towns down here too, it's not all like Port Wenn.

Anyway, Balearics are planning on some tourism in August! we are behind Spain on the CV curve and at our present rates, we will take even longer to lift these sorts of restrictions.

Local sentiment is v mixed according to the Bude Banter Facebook page. Fairly even spilt between 'tourists keep away for a long time' and people whose businesses depend on them, wanting tourists back as soon as is possible.

@Funnyfive of course will we still be social distancing by then. The virus isn't magically going to disappear, unfortunately.

I live in South Devon, within an hour I could go to Derriford, Royal Devon and Exeter or Torbay hospitals, I have no trouble getting delivery slots so I don't think it is impossible for South Devon to cope but you won't enjoy it, our Chief Constable doesn't think anyone should be out. Local MP reported a constituent last week being told to take her dog home and exercise it in her garden. All the beach car parks are locked, police inspecting regularly, fed up listening to the force helicopter the last few days. So I think if you come before lockdown is over you will just be sat in the hotel/cottage or whatever.

Funny thing is I went into town on Friday (emergency optician appointment) and there was a big group of men and the police weren't to be seen. As I drove home I saw what seemed like alot of police cars sat at the station. So make of that what you will, I assume lone women are an easier target than a gathering of big guys.