Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Covid

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Original poster

AIBU to ask whether you have cancelled or postponed travel/holiday due to Coronavirus

279 replies

croon979 · 25/02/2020 07:22

Up until this weekend I was relatively relaxed about Coronavirus. However, I was due to go to Dublin with work this week for a conference and my organization (global business) has temporarily banned attendance at conferences and all non- essential business travel due to Coronavirus.

It has caused me to read up a bit more about it and I am feeling a bit more anxious about it all. I am a chronic asthmatic very prone to chest infections which usually result in one hospital visit a year.

I am meant to be going to Lanzarote with my family including mum, brother, my husband and children for holiday in early April, a little over a month away. I see there is now a confirmed case in Tenerife!

I mentioned to my family that we may need to keep an eye on it and could need to cancel postpone if things escalate. Most thought this was an overreaction. Maybe it is. I wasn’t saying we definitely should but just wanted to put on their radar that we may need to.

Has anyone else postponed travel or holiday plans in light of this virus?

OP posts:
VivaLeBeaver · 01/03/2020 10:03

Dd is meant to be going to Japan in the summer, I’ve told her to hold off buying plane tickets.

fairgame84 · 01/03/2020 10:04

I'm getting married abroad in june. It's all paid for. I can't afford to cancel so we will be going. Insurance will only pay out if we actually fall ill. They won't pay out over 'fear of pandemic'.
I work frontline NHS so I've got more chance of catching it here. I'm worried about being quarantined abroad and whether the insurance will pay for that.

CassandraKnew · 01/03/2020 10:49

@SeasonallySnowyPeasant Whether you decide to lose money on a holiday already booked or not is a case of priorities and how lucky you feel. I suspect the people I've seen interviewed on cruise ships, the Tenerife hotel or come back from Italy with a virus wish they hadn't gone.

As to people who haven't booked yet but still planning to go abroad or holiday in the UK this summer, well I think it's pure folly. One thing is for sure, if you don't book now, the prices will be cheaper later on.

rookiemere · 01/03/2020 11:12

But Cassandra thousands of people will have gone to Tenerife in the same time period and suffered no impact at all. Cruises are different as in they seem to be a hot bed for breeding viruses and their core market is elderly people so if I was booked on a cruise, I may well rethink.

I'd agree that anyone booking a holiday now for the next 6 months is a bit optimistic, but for those of us with existing travel it seems sensible to wait and see what the expert advice is nearer the time. I'm not booking any extra trips or excursions for our Costa Rica summer holiday as I don't want to lose money, but I'm still hopeful we will be going.

Toomanygerbils · 02/03/2020 02:57

😂

AIBU to ask whether you have cancelled or postponed travel/holiday due to Coronavirus
HasaDigaEebowai · 02/03/2020 06:49

If you’re still travelling overseas at the moment then you need to expect to put yourself and your loved ones in harms way. Over 60s in particular have been advised to avoid crowds which would include airports and planes.

People need to wake up.

coronanamechange · 02/03/2020 07:03

What about crowds on the tube or public transport in the uk? How is that better?

If I were in a high risk category I'd probably now be avoiding all of those along with crowded places regardless of where in the world I was.

HasaDigaEebowai · 02/03/2020 07:27

Over 60s have been advised to avoid crowds. That would include crowded places in the UK yes.

Both those who are still thinking about imminent holidays at this point are really taking risks since they may well have to isolate and who knows what travel restrictions will be in place in a couple of weeks' time.

Original poster
croon979 · 02/03/2020 08:10

I think this week will be a very telling week

OP posts:
EnidBlyton · 02/03/2020 08:12

Is that well known advice about the over 60s?
i did read it but it has not been put out on bbc news

Original poster
croon979 · 02/03/2020 08:13

I must say that my husband is now looking a little sheepish. Things have escalated quite significantly since I started this thread and his attitude has also changed accordingly!

OP posts:
HasaDigaEebowai · 02/03/2020 08:37

Is that well known advice about the over 60s?
i did read it but it has not been put out on bbc news

Its the official WHO guidance from their statement at the weekend

KaptenKrusty · 02/03/2020 08:50

After just being in the tube at rush hour this morning - it was so crowded and there was people coughing all over the carriage and the handrails being touched by thousands of people - I don’t know how often the tube carriages are cleaned - I’d say chances are I’m more likely to get the virus on my daily commute than on a plane to Japan at this stage 🙄

HasaDigaEebowai · 02/03/2020 08:59

WHO advice for the over 60s about avoiding crowds

AIBU to ask whether you have cancelled or postponed travel/holiday due to Coronavirus
Kazzyhoward · 02/03/2020 09:00

Is that well known advice about the over 60s?

The over 60s will already know they're at higher risk of flu etc due to impaired immune systems which deteriorate with age.

Kazzyhoward · 02/03/2020 09:01

I’d say chances are I’m more likely to get the virus on my daily commute than on a plane to Japan at this stage

That's you - the vast majority of people don't commute on the Tube. If the spread continues in the UK, it's highly likely the Tube will be suspended anyway.

KaptenKrusty · 02/03/2020 09:13

😂😂😂😂

KaptenKrusty · 02/03/2020 10:21

Just 5 million of us on the tube daily that’s all... And the likelihood of it being suspended is tiny - chaos 😂

Kazzyhoward · 02/03/2020 10:33

Just 5 million of us on the tube daily that’s all... And the likelihood of it being suspended is tiny - chaos 😂

If it spreads like China, then it WILL be suspended.

Out of a UK total population of 60 million plus, 55 million don't use the tube daily, so as I said, most don't use it.

HasaDigaEebowai · 02/03/2020 10:36

Plus a significant percentage of those 5million don't really need to use the tube and could work at home anyway.

If schools/universities/colleges etc are closed and people are told to work at home wherever possible and avoid public transport then far fewer people will be on the tubes anyway.

Original poster
croon979 · 02/03/2020 14:17

Guardian is reporting 4 new uk cases bringing total to 40

OP posts:
KaptenKrusty · 02/03/2020 17:03

I was talking on a personal note - I have to take the tube daily and won't be able to work from home - it's always busy and people rammed in the carriages - so I feel that personally I am as likely to catch it on there than on a plane! therefore I will not be cancelling my travel plans unless the flight actually gets cancelled or advise changes to not safe to travel there

Titsywoo · 02/03/2020 18:21

We were supposed to be having a French Exchange student for a week on Saturday (DD is doing french GCSE) but France have now stopped all school trips outside of the country so the whole thing has been postponed until who knows when!

Carrotcakeforbreakfast · 02/03/2020 18:32

I'm meant to be going to the states at the end of April, just waiting to see what happens next.

zeeeex · 02/03/2020 18:46

I'm due to go to Bali at the very end of May, and will be fairly pregnant by that point. I think we are just going to see how things pan out over the coming weeks and then make a decision. Not sure if being pregnant makes me more at risk!