Red list travellers coming via Turkey to avoid quarantine

[GiveMeTulipsfromAmsterdam]

Bbc news today shows increasing numbers of travellers from red list countries flying to Turkey on route to the UK

@Frequentflier

Agree that the quarantine in the UK is just ridiculously expensive.

Exactly. This is why people are choosing to quarantine in non-red list countries.

Depends on how they do it.
Change planes in Green country, and fly straight onwards is done to evade hotel quarantine and is illegal.
Flying to a green country, staying there at least 10 days, following whatever covid precautions are required, and then flying to the UK and home quarantineing is legal. If you have an issue with this, you need to be cross with the inconsistent government rules, and not the people who are making legally valid choices.

@DancesWithDaffodils
Agree entirely

People are just doing their quarantine the cheapest way which is often more inconvenient, these people are quarantining twice but it saves them money, no different really to people that change planes in different countries to save money on long haul flights. As long as they do the legal quarantine in the country they are in they are doing nothing wrong

Some countries are right to be on the list, some don't make sence.

The uk has allowed people to leave for certain reasons and they are as most of then have family abroad and want to go for reasons allowed by uk regulations. And if these people are avoiding coming back to extravagant uk quarantine prices, then good for them. Plus they are leaving the possibility of any infection transmission in another country, come home and quarantine for another 10

I bet if everyone had a close relative abroad and could leave, given recipient country is allowing flights, people would go without a second thought if they had reasons within the uk regulations. Let's not forget how many people left the uk last summer to go on holiday without a second thought and those thousands of people who flocked to dubai to get away citing "business trips"

@DancesWithDaffodils

Depends on how they do it. Change planes in Green country, and fly straight onwards is done to evade hotel quarantine and is illegal. Flying to a green country, staying there at least 10 days, following whatever covid precautions are required, and then flying to the UK and home quarantineing is legal. If you have an issue with this, you need to be cross with the inconsistent government rules, and not the people who are making legally valid choices.

good point - doesn't matter where you quarantine really and if cheaper and you get a holiday at same time double bonus

My only problem is here is the sensational reporting. I would expect higher standards from BBC.

Yes, people avoided hotel quarantine but they spent 10 days in a green country (Turkey). If they had been infected back in India, this should have picked up by their pre-arrival mandatory PCR test. They then had to self-isolate (for at least five days) and test again when they made it to the UK (on day 2, day 5 - if they were taking advantage of test and release and day 8).

Arguably, at the end all this led to a lower risk of importing the variant.

But whether coming from a green or red tick country, why are people allowed to sit in planes and travel when we are not allowed in a relative's house for a cup of tea?

This is what makes a mockery of what everyone has endured for a year.

Most people who travel to India these days are not going there for fun.

One of my friends has just gone there to attend a funeral (of her 40 year old brother who was sure he was "absolutely fine" until he was not:(((). Another one had to leave to take care of his sick parents.

I’d do the same, I’d rather do quarantine in a nice warm country with access to a balcony to enjoy the nice weather & then fly home quite frankly! They aren’t doing anything wrong, simply their 10 day isolation is in Turkey instead of the U.K. They’ll need a negative test to fly.

@HolmeH

I’d do the same, I’d rather do quarantine in a nice warm country with access to a balcony to enjoy the nice weather & then fly home quite frankly! They aren’t doing anything wrong, simply their 10 day isolation is in Turkey instead of the U.K. They’ll need a negative test to fly.

And much better food and friendlier people. I'd probably stay a bit longer in Turkey after if I had the chance, it's a fab place to visit.