Summer Holidays - Right and Wrong?

[DadAManger]

Back in May I posted a thread saying we would probably not be able to go away again this summer (most of us anyway). This was before the Indian Variant/Open Sky Border cock-up.

At the time, I got a lot of messages of the `’you do you, I’ll do me”, “I’m going, no matter what they say”, “i have two trips to the US and two to Spain booked and I am GOING” variety and others that accused me of throwing those that worked in travel under the bus for even asking. String views, but understandable.

What are people doing now? Still going away and dealing with tests and quarantine in return? Been away already? Cancelled the lot because of Government rules? What’s happening?

I would love to travel overseas again but imagined back at the beginning of the year that it was probably going to be more hassle than it’s worth. So I booked us a series of UK breaks. The only people I know traveling abroad are visiting family or are taking trips that were postponed before.

@NotBot

This ‘it’s not essential’ narrative has got to stop. Thousands of people, like us, have holidays from Spring 2020 (that I booked in October 2019) being rebooked for a 3rd or 4th time. I’ve got £3000+ tied up in these holidays & I’ll be damned if they’ll give us a bloody refund

If we want to really get down to it, nothing is 'essential' other than food, water and shelter. This policing of 'essential' which has been going on over the past year is very tiresome at this stage.

Some people here seem to think they are morally superior because they aren't going on holiday. Bully for them.

@Lockheart

I didn't have a holiday last year and I don't have any planned this year, UK or otherwise.

A shame since I enjoy going on holiday but it's hardly an essential.

I think that for some people going away ‘on holiday’ is actually an essential. Both on a MH and social pov.

Talking in generalities like this don’t help imo.

If the USA border opens I'm going if we can. If Spain is still amber we may consider it and quarantine at home.

Holidays are essential to me and I couldn't give a stuff what any anonymous person thinks on here.

I hid away all last year and still got the crappy virus anyway.

We haven't booked our normal European trip for August because we cannot isolate when we return due to work and school, and because the price of the test packages for 4 people would be almost the same as the holiday itself.
I'm going to be beyond gutted when August rolls round and the rules have changed so that we could have gone after all. France have said this week that as from 9th June they will be open to U.K. tourists without quarantine on arrival.

@Frezia

I have flights booked to see my family in an amber country. I'm scrambling to see how I can fit the self isolation period within all the other obligations I have this summer. I'll explore every avenue before I give up.

I plan to follow all the rules while here and away like I always did, but I'm not worried about catching the virus and I don't feel guilty one bit for planning to travel abroad.

It's more likely for me to catch and spread the Delta variant whilst shopping, socialising indoors or sitting in a pub here in the UK than it is to do two flights on a plane for a total of two hours with masked people all of whom have tested negative. The country I'm going to has a much lower incidence of the Delta variant than we have here. All of my family abroad and most of my friends have been fully vaccinated and I don't plan to go to any parties or socialise outside that group anyway.

All of this, precisely.

I’ll be going abroad if the (European) countries I want to visit for a holiday are removed from Amber/ FCDO remove advice not to travel to the country (and the country will have me). My travel insurance won’t be valid for Amber list/ travel against FCDO advice and the EHIC/ GHIC (post brexit version of EHIC) have limitations in what’s included. As a sports enthusiast that could prove costly... so I’d never travel without valid insurance. Fortunately the type of holiday we have is very flexible and only requires booking a ferry or Eurotunnel which can be done last minute. Fingers crossed!! We got away last year and had a blast... much better than we’d have had staying here thanks to the grotty weather, stupid archaic access laws and backward thinking. We’re wild campers, wild swimmers and mountain bikers... all of which can be problematic in Little England. Scotland is ace though!! Much better access laws... it’s just the weather (and midges) though innit 😂

Still planning on going somewhere in August if we can, maybe Greek island or the Balerarics

I know some still planning to go, some who have rescheduled & some like me who didn't bother booking abroad.

@mrsnec "Here in Cyprus our figures are getting better but there's a couple of issues that could see them increasing again. And airlines cancelling flights for July."

Can I ask: did you mean that airlines cancelling will mean holidays to Cyprus won't go ahead, or that you believe they will be cancelled in July?

Due to got to Spain in a few weeks, and will still go unless they won't have us anymore! Happy to quarantine on the return.

FCDO advice is against "all but essential travel" not "all travel" so my insurance is still valid; I've checked.

Who knows what's coming in the future, so I'm not prepared to delay until e.g. September. If the window of opportunity is open now, I'm going to take it.

We will go away. Don't think the situation will be much different in the coming years, we are both fully vaccinated so what more can we do?

We're just back from a UK holiday that we'd moved from Easter to half term. We have another UK holiday next month with my parents, moved from last October half term and we have one booked this October, again UK, but we are aware that anything can change any time. We definitely wouldn't be considering going abroad just now. We've not been abroad for years anyway, not since having DC. We always just do UK holidays and really enjoy them.

I'm supposed to be attending a wedding in Europe in August (3rd attempt!). I've booked it, but will only be able to go if it's on the green list.

Have flights booked to/from Italy in early September, so keeping an eye on the rules for Italy, but not doing anything else at the moment. At some point, probably July, I'll look for airbnbs with a decent cancellation policy and then wait and see what Easyjet decide to do (they've already moved my flights once). I'm double vaccinated, and would also be ok if I had to quarantine back in the UK, but I don't particularly want to get stuck there and/or pay a fortune for tests. I'm also going to Scotland for a week before then, so at least I'll get to leave home regardless!

We were due to get married in zante in July but most our guests have cancelled or being cancelled now we booked everything separately so still plan to go but no wedding

@Candleabra Jet2 cancelled all flights and packages until July. Easyjet and Tui are cancelling packages and flights still.

Our clients who have dual nationality or are happy to quarentined are mostly using BA and Whizz who don't seem to be cancelling as many flights.

@mrsnec ok thank you. I'd heard about flights cancelled until early July, I was wondering if you had some insider knowledge that they would be cancelled for the whole of July. Do you think that seems likely?

Just seen on the news:

*Times this morning- the biosecurity centre recommended Malta and a host of other islands to go GREEN. And recommended that Portugal only be put on a watchlist as it was borderline"

But it was blocked by Matt Hancock.

So much for "following the science"

Surely if we are following the science when it's telling us we can't travel, we should be following it when it tells us we can.

Shameful, they probably don't want people travelling for the Euros, bars full of drunken Brits. I predict more countries added after 11th July.

I was hoping for us to be added (greek island) at the next review as we are supposed to be visiting my family.

Fingers crossed for you, I would like Cyprus to be added as well, as have family there.

I just feel an odd mix of cross and deflated.

Surely if we are following the science when it's telling us we can't travel, we should be following it when it tells us we can.

I was hoping there may be some serious questions asked about this but Harry and Meghan have had another baby now so I guess I'm shit out of luck on that one....

😁

Everything crossed for you too @HairyFloppins

Thankfully had a few staycations booked from last year we’ve managed to get away on with a few more to come over the summer and autumn. Wouldn’t dream of wasting time trying to book abroad as things change so quickly aka Portugal 👀