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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Are you going away in half term?

194 replies

Cocopogo · 17/10/2020 16:04

I have a couple of nights booked in UK. It’s likely the area will be T3 by time our half term in a couple of weeks. Happy to still go, chill in hotel room and walk in remote areas. DP says we shouldn’t go. Would you?
YABU - don’t go
YANBU - go and enjoy!

OP posts:
friendlycat · 18/10/2020 00:15

Good and valid point Sisyphus but many are just too focused on how they will all benefit from a family holiday at this time
If we all focused on how we would benefit at the moment I would have thought it would be how do we reduce the rate of transmission that might involve not travelling around the bloody country.

Tellmetruth4 · 18/10/2020 00:26

No staying put as it was obvious that as soon as autumn kicked in Covid would bounce back. That’s why we stuck with our plans to go abroad (to a travel corridor country) in August when the first wave was ending. I feel for our family and friends who are almost broken from relentless Covid with zero break since March.

I can’t see the second wave ending until after winter so it will probably be spring half term before we leave our area again.

SavageBeauty73 · 18/10/2020 00:29

Nope. London is tier 2 so can't travel.

tortoiseshell1985 · 18/10/2020 00:33

Thing is our area is T3 but our village, region is very low for cases ....

Whenwilligrowup · 18/10/2020 00:44

We're going away for a little 1 night /2 days break - Alton Towers Scarefest and Warwick Castle . We're from a tier 1 area and both of those areas are too. Why would I cancel?! (Unless they actually closed obvs)

Toothsil · 18/10/2020 02:45

To those who are glad they went on their summer holiday and were surprised at those waiting until October when it would be better - our October break had been booked for over a year. Long before any of this happened. We also had a summer holiday booked which we technically could have gone on but we didn't feel it was a good idea to go away the minute we were out of lockdown. The world and his wife came straight to our town though, and are still coming in their drives, and we are now in a local lockdown, have been since September, and in Tier 2, about to go into Tier 3. Up till the holiday makers started, we'd had very very few cases.

Toothsil · 18/10/2020 02:46

Droves, not drives

MsTSwift · 18/10/2020 07:01

I would be kicking myself too if we hadnt gone in the summer (drove to Germany and Italy then both low rates and self catered). It was amazing. Think friends thought we were mad at the time most of them Cancelled their summer and pushed their trips back to October half term - I never understood why everyone seemed to think October was somehow magic and it would be all over by then...

SuperCaliFragalistic · 18/10/2020 07:12

My half term holiday was booked in February. We didn't go away over the summer for other reasons. We're in a tier 1 area going to another tier 1 area. We're going unless something changes before Friday.

Digeridont · 18/10/2020 07:15

@SisyphusAndTheRockOfUntidiness

Interested to know how people going on holidays plan to isolate if they develop symptoms while they're away. Can't remain in the accommodation past the checkout datr (& presumably you'd need to inform the owner). How to travel home safely. What if your car breaks down.
As it happens, I’ve made contingency plans for that - we can stay in the accommodation as long as necessary if we do have to self isolate.

And even if that wasn’t the case. we can get there and back on one tank of petrol, so no stopping for fuel. And, as I said up thread, we plan not to go inside anywhere at all - it’ll be online food shopping and country walks.

Not everyone makes the same choices. What I plan is within the rules (I read them carefully to check) and I think it’s very low risk. If you wouldn’t do it, fair enough. But I do get to make my own judgement on what I am comfortable doing, within the rules.

Youreatragedystartingtohappen · 18/10/2020 07:16

@MsTSwift

We get it. You made a great choice and had an amazing holiday. The rest of us should have followed your example and "seized the day" even though for many it wasn't possible.

For many an October break did seem like a more sensible option or these breaks have been booked long before covid was even a whisper from wuhan so being smug that it wasn't the route you took.

IndecentFeminist · 18/10/2020 07:25

We love tourists here on the Isle of Wight, but I do hope we don't get an influx over half term

MsTSwift · 18/10/2020 07:27

It was DH and our lovely German Houseswap lady that made the choice to push ahead not me - I was the nervous one who was questioning if we were doing the right thing etc. Turns out they were totally right.

Mindsets need to change. Booking holidays months in advance looks less smart and you just go when you can don’t wait.

Florabella · 18/10/2020 07:30

Those of you cancelling uk breaks - have you had a refund from your holiday accommodation? Would you expect a refund in your circumstances?

Youreatragedystartingtohappen · 18/10/2020 07:36

@MsTSwift

If it was yourself who was unsure initially about your holiday then surely you can appreciate why OP and others are unsure themselves whether it's the right thing to be going on holiday right now?

Would also say that personally speaking the whole mindset about booking a holiday the best part of a year ahead comes from the annoying insistence of people that holidays have to be paid for in their entirety- I have to spend the year saving to pay for it!

I'm glad that you had a good time on your summer holiday but your anecdote and experience isn't really useful to the OP or anyone else who did bank on October being better. Tier 3 restrictions mean that it would be a very limited experience if you went right now.

Belleende · 18/10/2020 07:46

[quote girlicorne]@Crunchymum why is it any more idiotic than me travelling round the country for work last week where I was expected to visit 5 different cities around the U.K for meetings that could have been done on zoom? Why is it any more idiotic than going on days out in my own county which thousands and thousands of other people are doing? Theme parks are on reduced capacity, masks tare worn on all rides, temperatures checked on entry, social distancing is in place. They are as covid safe as possible and travel between tier 2 areas is allowed. I would not break the law and have stuck to all of the guidelines in place since March. I don t socialise as a rule and will be with my own household. I m not quite sure why you have picked on me out of everyone else on this thread planning on going on a half term break. Tourism needs our money or there ll be none left!![/quote]
I think people have baulked at your plans as they seem to have been designed to be the opposite of safe. If one of you is positive, think of the consequences of that. You will have been to so many different places, touched so many things, come into contact with so many people. You would need your own track and trace brigade just to work it out.

And your reasoning is odd. " I think my work makes me travel unnecessarily placing me at risk, so I am going to do the same with my family."

I get that people are desperate for a break, I was really lucky to get a week by the seaside in the summer and it really helped cope with all this crap, but pretty much everyone else on this thread has either cancelled, or is doing as low risk trip as possible, visiting one place, going SC, having shopping delivered etc.

Mummyoflittledragon · 18/10/2020 08:01

We are in T1. No way would I visit a T3. We aren’t going away. We should have been doing something but I had surgery a couple of weeks so dh had to take time off to look after me. That was then his holiday used up and I’m poorly at the best of times and not well enough to go anywhere.

Sceptre86 · 18/10/2020 08:01

We have a lodge booked for the lake district and are going for two nights. We will be eating in, taking packed lunches and intend to spend as much time outdoors going for walks as we can. I would have liked to pop in at my parents but they are in tier 2, maybe 3 by time we get to the lake district so we can't.

FuzzyPuffling · 18/10/2020 08:11

I live in a touristy area. It's difficult for us to get an online shopping delivery. All you "I'm getting an online delivery" folk, how about bringing your food with you?

Mumofboys1 · 18/10/2020 08:16

We are due to be going to Wales, we are in a medium risk (T 1?) and where we are due to go is also medium risk. Our accommodation is on a farm, 3 miles from anyone else so we were going to go, and take our food with us so we could be contained in our own bubble. The plan being we would just go for walks etc....however of course this is looking increasingly unlikely. We will see what happens tomorrow before cancelling. We picked accommodation which has free cancellation up till Saturday. Anyway, to my thoughts- I would definitely not travel between T's unless it was urgent.

bumblingbovine49 · 18/10/2020 08:21

@Cocopogo

Opinions seem pretty divided at the moment. I cancelled all other breaks this year but getting to point where I think a couple of nights away will do us all the world of good. DP is very much a need to follow ALL rules ALL the time kind of person with anything. Likely to be T3 to T3 area if I had to guess which then makes you wonder if there should be free movement between similar Tier areas as there is say in Liverpool, you can move around in Liverpool but no advised to go in or out of borders but if next border goes in to T3 then is it still advised to stay put?
58% YABU when I voted (I voted YANBU btw) so not exactly even . We are leaving the EU on a much smaller majority Grin

I can not going anywhere at the moment but if you feel ok with it then go . There is guidance against travelling into/ out of tier 3 but the wording is pretty wishy washy so I don't blame people who are desperate for a break for going on holiday

luckylavender · 18/10/2020 08:28

@girlicorne - surely that amount of travelling is utter madness. We should be reducing our contacts when you would be traipsing about all over place. I'm staggered you'd consider it.

leafygarden · 18/10/2020 08:29

@Sceptre86

The Lake District is in Tier 3 as of yesterday - how does it work that people are still allowed to come here for a holiday?

Asking this as we live in the Lake District and really don't understand the logic of any of the rules.

Peasbewithyou · 18/10/2020 08:31

We are going away (unless anything changes of course) but only 2 nights and only 20 mins drive down the road. Both in T1 areas. It’s a 5* country hotel break for DH 40th - we won’t be leaving the hotel grounds. In any case it’s on the outskirts of our local “big” town where I would go shopping if I needed to do I don’t feel like we are spreading anything.

I wouldn’t be going further afield and def not to a T3 area. It’s crap though. I really feel for people who booked things ages ago and keep having to postpone or cancel. It’s not the be all and end all but it’s nice to have something to look forward to!

TroysMammy · 18/10/2020 08:32

By all means you can all go on your holidays but don't complain when seeing family at Christmas is banned.