Getting Covid on holiday overseas

[LivesinLondon2000]

I have quite a few friends who went on holiday overseas over Christmas and none were particularly worried about the prospect of catching Covid while away and needing to isolate there.

We cancelled our holiday as that’s my main worry - being potentially stuck in a hotel room with my DC whilst I try to work remotely for 2 weeks and DH missing 2 weeks of work (not a job you can do remotely). Now I’m wondering whether to go away at half term. What do other people think? Is it too risky? DH can’t really risk an unplanned 2 weeks off work so probably the answer is yes.

And what would do you if you got a positive test abroad? One article I read (in the Telegraph I think) was about a family in Austria whose son tested positive while they were there and they needed to isolate. And all the comments below the article just said things like ‘why did you bother testing him?’ and ‘you should have lied about the result and flown home anyway’. This seems pretty immoral to my view but I just wondered if this was a common attitude/opinion.

I would only go on holiday if I could face the worst case. So in your case, can you face the two weeks isolation in a hotel room with your child whilst working and your DH missing work ?

I travel all the time, more to see family and always make sure if the worst should happen, I can face the situation. Otherwise I wouldn't go.

However, for a few months, there was no requirement to test negative before coming back to the UK anyway. That was only reintroduced in November I think. So perhaps by half term they may have removed the requirement again. Which then would just leave you with the moral decision of whether you'd even bother testing if you got sick on holiday or whether you'd just get on a plane sick.. etc..

As I understand it, your insurance pays for the hotel should you be abroad and test positive and have to isolate, but will not pay for anyone else in your party to stay in hotel, so something to consider.

Dd is just back from skiing. Two of her group are currently isolating in Switzerland as they tested positive so can't come home.

I wouldn’t risk it if you can’t afford the time off.

We were on holiday over Christmas. I spent the whole day of the return test worrying about the result and conjuring up symptoms. DH who is more laid back barely thought about it. (Both of us were fine)

The day 2 PCRs were a pain as DDs took 5.5days and 6.5 days to come back!

I'm with you OP. We didn't go abroad in the summer because it involved a test whilst abroad and I didn't fancy the implications if any of us tested positive. We went away to Tenerife for the October half term and that felt ok risk wise to me as no test before return, was also before super spready Omicron arrived.

We were talking about our French Feb half term ski trip.
Obviously at the minute we wouldn't go because the French won't allow us in, but even if they do, if there's still a requirement to test whilst abroad we'll probably not go as chances of having caught it after flying and skiing all week are probably high. DS is in an exam year so I can't risk us being stuck abroad and missing school.

I have to be brutally honest and say that if there was no requirement to test whilst away and I thought one of us had caught it, I'd do everything I could just to get us home. Deep down I suppose most people would, especially now Omicron doesn't appear to be hospitalising people.

i think it depends where you go and who with e.g. Tui test to return is just a photo of your lft test uploaded to a website. In theory anyone could do the test so i know loads who tested with nhs first and if negative then that person did all the families tests. Not saying its right but there are loads of ways round it.

If you open a lft and don't even swab yourself it 100% tests negative.

Testing positive abroad is totally not an issue with photo tests to return. Most people i know have used these when travelling

@Watapalava
Yes I think that must be what some people are doing or at least planning to do if they test positive abroad. Personally I’d feel really bad getting on a flight home when I knew I had Covid (what if you were sat next to someone vulnerable who was flying purely out of necessity and was relying on people taking those Covid tests for their safety)

But it’s potentially making my kids fake a test and lie that really bothers me. It’s not a great example to set to them is it.

I’m just not sure that I need a holiday that badly to risk dealing with all these moral quandaries 😂

@Watapalava

i think it depends where you go and who with e.g. Tui test to return is just a photo of your lft test uploaded to a website. In theory anyone could do the test so i know loads who tested with nhs first and if negative then that person did all the families tests. Not saying its right but there are loads of ways round it.

If you open a lft and don't even swab yourself it 100% tests negative.

Testing positive abroad is totally not an issue with photo tests to return. Most people i know have used these when travelling

Testing positive abroad is totally not an issue with photo tests to return. Most people i know have used these when travelling

It's only not an issue of you if you don't have a moral compass. Totally scumbag thing to do.

The thing is when you fly out there are 180-250 on a plane. Most vaccinated or kids under 12 and none of those people test to fly out so in theory could all have it!

We flew home on the Sunday and got the notification to isolate on the Wednesday...

@OchonAgusOchonOh
Sadly I think this is the reality. I know a lot of people who went away the last couple of weeks on packed flights from London to places like ski resorts where they would be mixing with lots of other British people. With rates of about 1 in 20 cases in London, they must have known their chances of catching Covid away are quite high. But hardly anyone I spoke to was at all concerned about not being able to get home or needing to quarantine abroad. I can only conclude that ‘faking the tests’ if necessary was part of the plan for many of them.

@Watapalava

The thing is when you fly out there are 180-250 on a plane. Most vaccinated or kids under 12 and none of those people test to fly out so in theory could all have it!

Most places require the vaccinated to test now too. Not sure about under 12's.

Regardless of whether others have been required to have a test, to knowingly get on a plane while you have covid is a total scumbag move.

[quote LivesinLondon2000]@OchonAgusOchonOh
Sadly I think this is the reality. I know a lot of people who went away the last couple of weeks on packed flights from London to places like ski resorts where they would be mixing with lots of other British people. With rates of about 1 in 20 cases in London, they must have known their chances of catching Covid away are quite high. But hardly anyone I spoke to was at all concerned about not being able to get home or needing to quarantine abroad. I can only conclude that ‘faking the tests’ if necessary was part of the plan for many of them.[/quote]
And that is exactly why we have the rates we have. Utterly selfish people whose own wants and desires override everything else.

The thing is when you fly out there are 180-250 on a plane. Most vaccinated or kids under 12 and none of those people test to fly out so in theory could all have it!

The destination I flew to, required all persons age 6+ to get negative LFT. Vaccinated or not.

I like Watapalava's post because I couldn't figure out how to cheat the test... that said, I wouldn't go abroad simply for a holiday. Sunshine cravings or not. We went abroad to see close family, though. You have to accept some risks in doing this.

@lljkk

The thing is when you fly out there are 180-250 on a plane. Most vaccinated or kids under 12 and none of those people test to fly out so in theory could all have it!

The destination I flew to, required all persons age 6+ to get negative LFT. Vaccinated or not.

I like Watapalava's post because I couldn't figure out how to cheat the test... that said, I wouldn't go abroad simply for a holiday. Sunshine cravings or not. We went abroad to see close family, though. You have to accept some risks in doing this.

Cheating on a test when you've been to visit family is no less morally reprehensible than cheating on a test when you've been on a holiday.

This is one of the reasons I’m putting off international travel. I’ve been sick loads of times on holiday (hardly ever sick at home) so the symptoms most people are getting wouldn’t bother me. It’s the prospect of being stuck in isolation in a foreign country that would be an issue and getting a negative test to fly home. I live in Australia and pretty sure we still need negative PCR tests to get back into the country.

How the heck do you cheat? I have done it abroad once and could not have cheated as it was done to me at a centre.
I was so glad the second time I travelled that the rule was suspended. Can't imagine being stuck somewhere for days on end, and what if you get really sick with it?

@Itchylegs

How the heck do you cheat? I have done it abroad once and could not have cheated as it was done to me at a centre. I was so glad the second time I travelled that the rule was suspended. Can't imagine being stuck somewhere for days on end, and what if you get really sick with it?

The UK entry requirement can be satisfied using a LFT whose picture is uploaded to an App... you declare its you who has done it properly, but they don't actually check its you. So it could be anyone. Or done incorrectly.

I wouldn't necessarily recommend this approach but a friend just returned from abroad and to do the return LFTs they did a 'practice' one first with the DH's nose (with some extras they'd taken) and then as it was negative did all four swabs with DH's nose and uploaded them for the whole family.

Travelled home no problem.

All four tested positive on PCR when home!!!! They then isolated responsibly but of course nobody actually checks that you do the PCRs.

It'd not ideal but is an absolute shambles of a system that does nothing other than make a lot of money for tory donors!

@Frazzled2207

I wouldn't necessarily recommend this approach but a friend just returned from abroad and to do the return LFTs they did a 'practice' one first with the DH's nose (with some extras they'd taken) and then as it was negative did all four swabs with DH's nose and uploaded them for the whole family.

Travelled home no problem.

All four tested positive on PCR when home!!!! They then isolated responsibly but of course nobody actually checks that you do the PCRs.

It'd not ideal but is an absolute shambles of a system that does nothing other than make a lot of money for tory donors!

They then isolated responsibly

That's a bit of an oxymoron, given their behaviour with the original test.

PS most of the rest of the plane home were apparently a large student group who 'all had covid' and did the same.
Just one out of the group of 50 or so got left behind as she was actually properly ill and didn't think she could fake it.
So probably the whole of the rest of the plane got it on the way home.
In France however the general attitude was everyone has it so who cares.

I went abroad to Greece in September/October this year. At that time, the Greek government undertook to pay for your accommodation if you had to extend your stay because of covid. Not sure if it still does.

Plus, if you get hospitalised overnight (idid, unfortunately) your stay and treatment is covered by the Greek government, if you have the EC11(?). I didn't because I didn't think there was any point after we left the Eu. I got an email from the British embassy telling me how to apply for an emergency one. So my nights stay, transfer from the island I was on by special ambulance in a neck brace and body board, x-ray, CT scan, two pcr tests, etc, were paid for.

I d feel guilty if I didn't put so much into the economy of the very small island I visit for eight weeks a year.

@Frazzled2207

I wouldn't necessarily recommend this approach but a friend just returned from abroad and to do the return LFTs they did a 'practice' one first with the DH's nose (with some extras they'd taken) and then as it was negative did all four swabs with DH's nose and uploaded them for the whole family.

Travelled home no problem.

All four tested positive on PCR when home!!!! They then isolated responsibly but of course nobody actually checks that you do the PCRs.

It'd not ideal but is an absolute shambles of a system that does nothing other than make a lot of money for tory donors!

I'm always amazed at how much people share with each other about the rules they broke. I wonder why they don't fear repercussions.

It would make more sense to have to do the LFTs at check in at the airport...