A minefield of Covid restrictions on the continent leaves young travellers from the UK facing regular testing on holidays in order to eat in a restaurant or go swimming in a hotel pool
Families skiing in Europe face forking out for hundreds of pounds worth of daily Covid tests while on holiday this winter.
In all four major ski destinations currently open to UK families – Italy, France, Austria and Switzerland – Covid passports are soon to be, or are already, mandatory for everything from eating in a restaurant to swimming in the hotel pool.
Covid passports, which differ from nation to nation but usually involve downloading an app, are easily obtained through proof of vaccination.
However, for travellers aged 12-to-15, who under current UK vaccination policy are unable to get a second jab and become fully vaccinated, the only way to obtain a Covid passport (besides proof of a recent past infection) is to provide proof of a negative test result at repeated intervals throughout a holiday.
Under Austria’s “Entry Test” system, mandatory for entry to most places for all aged 12 and up, an antigen test grants just 24 hours of validation, and PCR tests 72 hours.
Setting aside the discomfort and inconvenience, the cost of an antigen test every day for a week on holiday in Austria would be around £150 per child.
In France, the cost of the three tests, taken every two days in order to top up the vaccine status on the French pass sanitaire “health pass” app, would be around £65.
The Covid passport app (which can also be presented in paper form) is mandatory for children aged 12 and over from 30 September for activities including access to hotels pools, long distance transport and eating or drinking outdoors at a cafe or restaurant.
In Italy, a negative antigen test result will grant a Green Pass (mandatory for most activities for those aged 12 and over) for 72 hours, allowing youngsters the same status as their fully vaccinated parents for just three days at a time.
Meanwhile, in Switzerland, the alpine nation currently suffering the worst Covid outbreak, the problem is flipped on its head and parents must submit to testing.
Proof of a UK vaccination status either on paper or via the NHS app is not accepted for use by Switzerland’s Covid Certificate app, which is mandatory for all those over the age of 16. Therefore PCR tests, valid for 72 hours, or antigen tests, valid for 48 hours, or proof of recent recovery, must be used to gain the pass.
Differing vaccination levels across the world creates a minefield of restrictions for young British travellers who are unable to obtain full vaccination status under the UK’s current vaccine rollout plan. The Government has so far only stated an intention to offer a single dose of the Pfizer vaccine to children aged 12 to 15, a policy which is already keeping young people locked out of many countries.
In terms of ski destinations alone, unvaccinated young holidaymakers of a certain age will find themselves barred from entry to Germany, Canada and Finland. Germany offers no provision for unvaccinated holidaymakers aged 12 and over to enter. Canada requires 14 days of quarantine for anyone aged 12 and over who is not double-jabbed. Finland will only accept unvaccinated travellers born in 2006 or later, meaning that most 15-year-olds would fall down the bureaucratic crack of not being vaccinated while also not being young enough to be exempt from the rule. They will not be able to enter the country this winter
inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/travel/unvaccinated-uk-teenagers-face-hundreds-for-daily-covid-tests-ski-holidays-1206048