Do you think holidays will be normal this year?

[PutYourMopInToIt]

We are hoping to go abroad this year; nothing booked so far. A European trip later in the year.

DH and I are triple vaxxed. Two of our DC are under 11 and one is 13. The 13 year old has SN and is unable to be vaccinated.

Do you think this will cause travel issues later in the year? Are PCR tests required at both ends before boarding?

Is it all just going to be a big hassle?

I think things within the EU and probably including the UK (up to a certain point and if vaccinations remain high and cases low) will be pretty much like last summer possibly with fewer restrictions still.
Then there are the countries with open doors that are desperate for tourists, but I'd look at their vaccination, testing, and reporting of cases first. In some, it is most definitely not that they arent restricting tourism because they are Covid free, but because they need the money tourism brings.

I would say this. Look at the places you would like to go and then see the requirements, firstly entry obviously and then whether you can do the things you would like to while there.
If you are a rent an apartment on the coast and eat at home family then as long as you can enter there shouldn't be major issues. However if you want to dine at restaurants, go to theme parks/ museums/travel around using public transport, then this type of holiday may prove more difficult due to your son's vaccination status.
I feel the key is to be flexible in your destination and be prepared to change either country or type of holiday.
Just in case I misinterpreted your OP, if by any chance your son is unable to be given the vaccination, even if he were to want it, then this should be an exemption in most countries.

It all depends where you plan to go.
Even if no restrictions in the UK every single country has their own rules.
We are not in the EU and so in lots of EU countries there are stricter rules for none EU visitors.
You may for example have to wear masks outdoors as well as indoors. Masks required on the beach in some places such as Turkey.
Double masks in Greece in some places.
There is an interesting article about some of the odder rules in yesterday's telegraph. I won't link because it's behind a paywall.

In Greece, for example, there are situations where you will be required to wear two masks if you do not have an N95/FFP2 mask. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office says: “It is mandatory to wear a mask in all indoor and outdoor public spaces, in all areas of Greece. In certain areas, such as in supermarkets and pharmacies, and on public transport, you will be required to wear either double masks (at least one of which should be surgical), or an N95/FFP2 mask.”

You have to quarantine if you visit the Netherlands regardless of vaccine status

www.tui.co.uk/holidays/where-can-i-go-on-holiday/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Entry-requirements-for-our-holiday-destinations-040222.pdf

Tui has a great table summarizing requirements for different countries. If you’re able to be flexible on where you go then there are definitely options for unvaccinated and different levels of testing requirements.

God I hope so. We want a nice sunny holiday! Also desperate to take our little girl to Disneyland paris but not risking booking that until last minute

I think that travelling with an unvaccinated 13-year-old you would really need to do your research carefully. Some countries don't allow 13-year-olds to enter the country at all if unvaccinated. Others may allow entry, but may require proof of vaccination to do all sorts of everyday things such as eating at a restaurant or visiting an attraction. If your 13-year-old is unable to cope with wearing a mask, that's another point to bear in mind as many other countries have much stricter mask mandates than the UK.

@Lemons1571 Completely agree about a grace period. My son will no more of a risk one week than he was the previous week.
But so much of this is not about science…

We've driven to Italy for the last 2 years and aside from testing it was normal.

I think this year there won't even be testing by summer, unless there's another more dangerous variant.

Normal changes all the time, I remember post 9/11 flying got way more complicated due to security - liquid volumes and lots more checks. That's normal now and whilst a hassle no one minds. Mask wearing and vaccine passports will just go like that. Although I do think in a couple of years the pandemic will be properly over so it will be dropped.

We've driven to Italy for the last 2 years and aside from testing it was normal.
I thought Italy had introduced a requirement for vaccine passports for many activities?

I’ve been on 7 holidays during the pandemic. I’m currently in the US and find it pretty much normal minus the mask wearing. I only had to do an antigen test one day before travel which cost me £16

Mask wearing and vaccine passports will just go like that. Although I do think in a couple of years the pandemic will be properly over so it will be dropped

I sincerely hope the vaccine passport nonsense is dropped. But we still have the stupid rules about only being able to have small bottles of liquids in hand luggage so I am not holding my breath.

Who knows.

My honest advice for you is plan to stay in the uk.

You have an unvaccinated child who I assume can’t be easily swabbed either , and if his additional needs are such he can’t be vaccinated I would image the last thing you want /need is him being treated for Covid abroad , where understanding of his medical needs would be be the same as in the uk.

If we aren’t testing and aren’t isolating you can be sure there will be several on the plane with Covid - just as asymptomatic carriers , never mind idiots who know they have it be travel “ it’s just a cold “

Holiday destinations can and will change entry requirements from the uk on the flip of a coin too. It’s probably not possible to insure against that.

Though I guess the uk are hoping to roll out the vax for 5-11’s in time for the summer season.

Not happening.

The assessment was there was no clinical benefit to 5 to 11 year olds to do so unless they were extremely clinically vulnerable.

The milder omicron certainly hasn't shifted the position on that either.

If the US keeps vaccine passports in some states for activities, then thats going to be a major barrier for some families for some time and I can well see that being the case. The state wants their own 5 to 11 year olds vaccinated so are highly unlikely to make exceptions for foreigners.

With regards to the EU. My suspicion is there is less political will to do the same for 5 - 11year olds. Uptake in this group isn't that high, and I think it will create a massive political storm domestically if they tried to mandate it for this age group in many countries. The only country, who may go that far might be Austria but I think its an outlier.

I think its particularly difficult if you have an 11 year old about to turn 12 though atm. You will need to be particularly on the ball.

Also be aware that many countries are only counting someone as fully vaccinated if the second injection was within a certain time frame (Austria was 12 months and I believe France has now got it at 9 months) with it being in mind that this will be changed to needing to have been boosted in the near future.

So if you haven't had your booster, you might want to keep this in mind.

Again different policies might cause problems going into next autumn when many Brits might not yet have had another booster or they are timed out on their booster but not eligible for another one - unlike citizens of the country they are visiting, if there is a difference in opinion on what to do for next winter. So be mindful of this when backing something for later than October too.

Our children are younger but I think for portugal 12+ do need to be vaccinated

Nope. No one has to be vaccinated to travel to Portugal. A negative lat flow or recovery certificate are the entry requirements.

We are off to Florida if we test negative on Saturday and went over Christmas. Just a pre flight LTF and test 3-5 days in for any unvaccinated 18 year old (not registered anyway).

As Redtoothbrush says some states (California and New York) do have vaccine mandates for indoor stuff but Florida wont so it is a fairly safe choice.

They do need to be able to mask wear though on the plane for the moment and the US has no mask exemptions

Of course, the rules change all the time. At the moment Croatia looks like a possibility and Portugal is looking hopeful. Turkey will allow the unvaccinated in with a test, but require masks outside the residence all the time, including the beach!

You might think about a cruise. P&O are currently saying that 12-17s can travel unvaccinated (not to the Caribbean) with a PCR. They also give everyone a LFT before boarding. You may be restricted by local rules in some countries, so it would be good to look carefully at the itinerary, but they offer LFTs (£18) or PCRs (£25) on board if required to visit a port, or you could just stay on board and enjoy the sun, facilities and a view of the port if you prefer not to test. If you can go ashore but can't enter premises without vaccination, you can at least explore a bit and then return to the ship to eat. They also produce a handy updated-weekly list of what's required where, but only for places they go.

I've booked a week in France in May, and a weekend in Madrid in June. I'm hoping everything will be more normal by then. I'm travelling within the EU though. Don't care about mask wearing or having a covid pass.

Booked a holiday to Italy last month once the EU announced the 270 day vaccine passport rule (basically no entry requirements if your most recent jab is within 9 months), but earlier in the week Italy decides to reduce that to 6 months, meaning even though we're triple vaccinated, we'll be classed as "unvaccinated" by the time the holiday comes around.

And with there being no option of a 4th booster, the entire system seems a bit biased against those that got their booster jabs early

@EngTech

Will people be able to afford holidays? 😳

Well mine was booked and paid for in 2019...

@Wanderinglife
I agree that it seems this way but Simon calder’s interpretation is that as long as you have a booster you’re fine. It’s if you had two doses and didn’t then get a booster that there is a strict time limit

@Toty

Our children are younger but I think for portugal 12+ do need to be vaccinated

Nope. No one has to be vaccinated to travel to Portugal. A negative lat flow or recovery certificate are the entry requirements.

This is rumoured to be the opposite from next month

www.google.com/amp/s/inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/travel/europe-entry-requirements-travel-restrictions-half-term-holidays-spain-france-portugal-explained-1443575/amp

We had wanted to go to the Netherlands this summer but have dropped it due to their ridiculous quarantining rules and the UK being considered high risk.
We're considered Croatia as they are quite relaxed but have settled on Sweden.

Hi @ExhaustedMumma where did you see Canary Islands are dropping the mask wearing outside mandate. That would be good news!

It changes all the time so it's difficult to say. I went to Spain in October and no test required to enter but a test to come home and one when back in the UK. I went a couple of weeks ago and no test required to enter but we had to wear masks everywhere indoors and in the streets walking about and we had to show vaccine passports to be able to eat or drink inside bars and restaurants.

In Greece last summer we also had to wear masks outdoors.

I've found some of the restrictions more annoying than the testing.

@UmbilicusProfundus there’s a couple of articles confirming it for Spain as a whole from Thursday. No more than half of the people walking around here are bothering with masks outside. Our journey today was really good - no issues and felt very normal.