International travel

[Aloneonprecipice]

Hi all

We are all booked for a holidays in July to a non red list country. I am all confused about testing rules and quarantine. It is aimed that all restrictions will be lifted by 21 June. Does this mean masks and travel testing and quarantine will also be done with.

I got cheap fully refundable tickets, so I am not very worried about losing money but should I be getting ready for cancellation or excited for the trip?

I know no one knows for sure but what are ur best guesses.

@SeasonFinale thought he said he’d explain the International travel conditions on that day. There are European countries with a roadmap for reopening already. Like a traffic light and depending which country you come from when going to that country you’ll have some condition or others.

There are Southern European countries which are pushing for letting British people travel this summer to their country despite right now it’s banned

@Crazycatlady83

BA has just announced a deal with a government approved tester for tests to be £33 each, a telephone consultation and then “fit to fly” certificate issued within 30 mins. Tests are “portable” so you can take them with you for the return trip. I think a lot of airlines are in discussions of this sort with testing companies to open up travel and make it cheaper.

Definitely “watch this space” for the 12th April as lots of discussions going on with EU countries, airlines and the government to see how travel can reopen. It’s a massive industry and we need it to succeed. Not to mention all those people who just want to see loved ones who live abroad!

@Crazycatlady83 do you have more info about this? I want to travel on holidays this year and I’m between ba and easyJet being ba more expensive

@Crazycatlady83 is this really true. It will be a game changer. And a very good idea. Cuz govt want to give the tourism and airline industry a boost otherwise the future is looking very grim for them.

Hey, sorry just trying to work out how to post a link! It’s in The Times so I hope so The Daily Mail and Express are also reporting!

Does this work?!

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/british-airways-to-let-passengers-do-their-own-covid-tests-x725kqsd3

Thanks! I found it! Seems like it’d an antigen rather than pcr ... so wonder whether they’ll start accepting rapid tests or only for those travelling with ba.

Worried tho ! I’ve done 3 tests and one came back inconclusive ... do you but 2 just in case

I think it will all be part of the discussions in the “task force”, results which Bojo will announce on the 12th April. I guess it will be up to the country you are travelling too as well.

I think all will become clearer on the 12th April. But it depends on what other countries decide not just the UK government.
Personally I think you will need to have either vaccine or test but hopefully not both. We are booked for second half august and hopeful but not excited. Moved from 2020 and prepared to move to 2021. What would really be annoying would be if we could go but no guarantee that we wouldn’t have to quarantine on return. Would probably cancel if any possibility of that.

Greece is already talking about striking deals with the UK for tourism. They are DESPERATE to have us back - we are a huge proportion of their income.

They are also doing slightly better then mainland Europe on vaccinations.

Cyprus will allow British tourists who have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19 into the country without restrictions from 1 May, a tourism minister has said.
Visitors would need to be inoculated with vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), he said, and the second dose of a vaccine should be administered at the latest seven days before travel. Authorities would still reserve the right to carry out random tests on arrivals, Perdios added.

I wish children could be vaccinated.

If Cyprus is allowing people in from 1st May that is mainly only health care workers and those over 70, though not all 70 year olds as the top 4 groups were not done until mid Feb. Also I believe we can't travel overseas until 17th May.

Most over 50 would not meet the criteria of fully vaccinated + 1 week until end June. Though DS (28) managed to get a vaccine 3 weeks ago from the leftovers at his local hospital so will be able to get on the holiday plane fairly early, sooner than me...

There are Southern European countries which are pushing for letting British people travel this summer
Great, so for the sake of a short-term rise in income, they are willing to become a petri dish to allow Covid to be exchanged with visitors from different countries and locals, so people can go there and bring back a new variant?

If Cyprus is doing it, others are going to follow soon enough with their own versions of rules. Everyone and every country wants to go back to normal.

I just read this about the BA test www.headforpoints.com/2021/03/05/british-airways-33-covid-test/

We are eyeing up Greece too but not booked anything - we will wait and see.

We drove last year and actually had the best holiday ever - we visited a near empty Venice...

we visited a near empty Venice...

Gosh that must have been a once in a life time experience, what a privilege, I was so disappointed by our experience in Venice due to the sheer amount of tourists.

(I appreciate I was one of them!)

Great, so for the sake of a short-term rise in income, they are willing to become a petri dish to allow Covid to be exchanged with visitors from different countries and locals, so people can go there and bring back a new variant?

Fingers crossed

@Alfaix

I wish children could be vaccinated.

They’re doing tests for 5-16

I know user. We weren’t going to go then as it was allowed we did drive not flew. An experience us and our teens will never forget. St marks square a quarter full mid August

I can't believe so many people contemplating foreign travel just now! There are so many unknowns and uncertainties at present. I am very positive about the vaccines, it was the foreign travel, mainly from European ski resorts that brought Covid to our shores last year, and the unscientific lifting of travel restrictions last summer that contributed heavily to the second wave.
Why book just now? That feels irresponsible. Can you not just wait a bit longer until the situation is clearer?

@Alfaix

I wish children could be vaccinated.

I agree as how will parents be able to travel abroad if vaccine certificates are required, but their children are not vaccinated?

@digitaldays
Well I agree but in our case flights can be changed to next year up until 2 weeks before and accomodation can be refunded if cancelled more than 2 days before.
We are booked for august and I think the chances of actually going are about 40%. It’s a gamble but financially, a very small one. If it suddenly becomes clear in June that we can travel in august the prices will skyrocket and no way could we afford it.

How will anyone prove they have been vaxxed?

The last thing the NHS needs is a huge admin job to verify everyone.