Oh bollocks, I'm really nervous about my holiday now!

[stopitkenneth]

We're due to head to a French campsite in four weeks (driving all the way). We've cancelled two holidays due to COVID, Malta at Easter and Mellorca now. We decided a couple of weeks ago that we'd try for France as quarantine had lifted and I was able to get comprehensive insurance.
But now I'm really worried about needing to quarantine when we get back!

I know, I know, booking anything now was optimistic and a bit stupid. But we really REALLY want to get away (I'm frontline NHS,I need a bloody holiday). And it's hard to see how rates in France could be worse than what we've got here.

At no point have my workplace says that we shouldn't be booking holidays abroad. So if I do have to quarantine on my return, then I'm hoping they'll either support me to work from home, or I'm happy to take the two weeks unpaid. I'm hoping that because I booked it during the time that there was no quarantine, they can't come down hard on me. But I'm now really worried.
Argh!

Oh, and lets not forget the UK has the worst record for Covid out of the whole of Europe. .

I am in Cornwall right now, and everyone is socially distancing kit
You are wrong on this. Everyone is being really careful, wearing masks and generally doing things that are as safe as possible.

The sheer numbers on planes and touching the same things is going to be a major risk, assuming everyone is wearing medical grade masks properly and not touching it - unlikely, and then the restaurants/toilets/buses cross contaminated by so many different people. Of course it is nowhere near as safe as driving to one location, in a car without stopping and staying there touching nothing or no one!

Oh, and lets not forget the UK has the worst record for Covid out of the whole of Europe. .

Because we started lockdown to late, didn't have enough test kits and not asking people entering the country to quarantine etc.

Even more important to be proactive now and learn fro those mistakes! Especially as case numbers are currently relatively low.

Government have already said France cases are on the rise and its likely to impost the 14 day quarantine on return from France

As someone currently in France on holiday I'd be interested in seeing your link as to this statement if you have one?
I've been following the news whilst away and not seen this comment from the Government re France online, so would be interested to see/read it.

@KitKat1985 pandemic handling is a fluid beast. R numbers are currently higher in Spain and I believe France than they are here.

Infection rates appear to be most impacted by indoor contact not outdoor and we didn't see infection spikes after beaches reopened and BLM gatherings.

Self flagellation is no longer helpful. We need to look at current numbers and learn from any examples in other countries around us. For example- based on experiences in other countries- opening indoor nightclubs would be an extremely risky decision to take.

aragog

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/07/26/france-could-placed-second-lockdown-cases-keep-rising-pm-warns/

I believe the French are preparing for a second wave. Lots of clusters that have got very large in the last few days.

lavender Perhaps look at it from a different point of view, having lost 45,000 people - think about how many lives that actually is.

We are in no rush to see a repeat, which is why all of my Dutch, French and Swiss friends are motoring around Europe on holiday without a care in the world, and every single one of my British friends bar none are staying at home. Actually ditto for those that live in Italy this year too. It is safe to say we have learnt our lesson the hard way, and are not comfortable with a repeat performance or worse this autumn.

which is why all of my Dutch, French and Swiss friends are motoring around Europe on holiday without a care in the world,

None of my German or French relatives and friends are travelling abroad this summer! And if you read their local press, it is strongly discouraged to travel abroad. Sensible advice I think.

Madbirdlady - I know about the French outbreaks etc. And what has been written about in France and a potential second wave. Though at present the outbreaks are only in certain areas and in some areas have been traced to particular groups/meet ups.

What I meant was the reference to the Government (UK) saying that quarantine for travellers returning from France is likely.

Lavender - whilst your friends may not be doing, lots clearly are. In France we have spoken to tourists from other areas of France, from Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg.

In Germany we heard a lot of French people.

All this week and last.

Lots of tourists from across Europe where I am too.

When did you book?

Before March and you have my sympathy

After March - well you knew there was always a risk of lockdowns or quarantine so I it can't be that much of a surprise to you if it happens surely?

I know the vaccine would normally take a long time to be properly tested but I am thinking of that awful ebola outbreak a few years ago, where a drug was fast-tracked and WHO allowed its use, very much more quickly than would have been the case had it gone through at a normal rate. I can't remember the actual details - which were probably very different admittedly - but things can be fast tracked through processes sometimes, clearly.

@KitKat1985

Oh, and lets not forget the UK has the worst record for Covid out of the whole of Europe. .

Infections in Spain and France are now running at a higher rate than the UK.

Different countries have different ways of "counting" the deaths and it's becoming accepted that the UK over-recorded covid deaths when people died of something else.

Some other countries have been proved to have under-reported cases.

@Popc0rn

Unless you live in Scotland that is, where a woman is in charge and the rules make sense.

Really? When PM opened corridor to certain countries for travel, NS says no cases to high following the science. Monday passed, opens Scotlands corridor with Spain. Yet on that very Monday Spain’s numbers were continuing.be on the up, much higher than when she kept the corridor closed.

A lot of tosh, many Scots families booked last minute breaks on her opening up and 5 days later closes them.
She was never following the science, she is looking very stupid now!

The over counting is very small less than the under counting at the start of the the outbreak.
fullfact.org/health/coronavirus-death-count-data/

Cases in France have been rising for about three weeks but are still at a similar level to the the uk overal 14 cases per 100,000

watching with interest as meant to be driving to france for a few days in an isolated cottage in a couple of weeks...flexible tickets, sympathetic french landlady, undserstanding boss but who knows

aragog I can't link anything because I heard it on the news channels (BBC and Sky) saying that Germany and France may well be added to the list in the next few days. I understand the rates are going up quickly in both countries, Belgium and Austria also.

I hope you can get home safely and easily.

lavender We work internationally, and have friends overseas and here ovbviously. All of our European friends are going on holiday as usual, admittedly they are driving but all are still going and driving and stopping en route in multiple countries. We live in a beauty spot with lots of tourism and it is heaving full of international travellers.

I would say the British and Irish are keen to stay at home this year and holiday, the same can not be said for every country, and this clearly driving a second wave.

I don’t think the rest of Europe got the MN memo about not holidaying abroad this year.

I’m currently in south west France and there’s so many Dutch, Spanish, German and people from Belgium here too. Not many british but there never has been in the 5yrs we’ve been coming to this area.

And most people commenting about not being able to socially distance on a plane clearly have no concept of how air filtering on an aeroplane works. It is certainly safer than being on a bus or train.

Well obviously traveling on a bus/coach abroad isn't recommended either. Eurostar maybe if it's quiet and plenty of room to distance.

On an aeroplane you're all cramped together in a small space with one little toilet.

there’s so many Dutch, Spanish, German and people from Belgium here too We live in SW England and it has never been busier with international travellers, I am not sure why they have come here of all places!! Best friend lives in France, and it is heaving everywhere.

The second wave is now all but guaranteed, and just like the Italian and Austrian ski resorts started the first wave in the February half term, we can expect a repeat any week now all the way across the continent. I wonder how many times we will have to suffer before the penny drops...

Madbirdlady - certainly not seen anything on the official news pages that these countries are at risk imminently. Spain was spoken about for a while before it happened. Hopefully other countries can get a hold on their outbreaks.

We've only got til Saturday now and we've had a lovely holiday.

But if they do add France to the list it won't be too bad. It'll be a bit annoying, especially as we've been SDing here as well as other precautions and masks. I'm clinically vulnerable so taking additional care whilst away too. But I'm not due back at work until September, Dh can work from home. dd isn't due to go to university until the end of September and I already have some Ocado delivery slots booked for our return, so we could manage 14 days quarantine if need be.

aragog It was on the news this morning. I was surprised as the numbers look similar to ours in France. It is obvious when it comes to Spain etc, but not so much with France. I would just keep an eye on local lockdown updates, make sure you have plenty of food stocked up just in case, and check and see if you have access to a printer. As I think you will need forms if the area you are in goes into a lockdown in order to be able to go out.

I wouldn't have thought it would happen overnight to France, but then it did happen in a matter of hours with Spain, which was very alarming. One minute it was all fine, the next it was essential travel only and most flights and holidays have since been cancelled.

Are you flying back? Perhaps let the airline know you are vulnerable, they may be able to give you extra space if they are able to.

Spain and France both have higher cases and are performing fewer tests than us at the moment, obviously that could all change fairly quickly as it did at the beginning of the pandemic.