Chickenpox and holiday

[Traveljo]

HELP! Anyone with chickenpox and holiday experiences? DS is on day 4 of the dreaded pox and we are due to fly out on Sunday. DD hasn’t had it before and seems to have dodged every case in school (praying that she has had it without symptoms)
Do we get a fit to fly (if we can) and chance daughter getting it out there or try to cancel?
hubby thinks if DS is ok to fly then we should go as DD may not even get it.
Any advice or experiences are grateful appreciated 😊

Good grief. Staying in a substandard hotel vs knowingly taking an infectious child in close confinement with potentially vulnerable people.

some people never cease to disappoint me

Well it’s easy to say what you would do when it’s your hypothetical, different when it’s your reality.

I'd chance it OP if he gets a fit to fly. Keep him cool and put him in an oat bath as it'll decease spots itch and they will scab over better. If your daughter has dodged it so far in school you might be lucky and she already has immunity to it

We had this at exactly this time last year. Dd2 had recovered enough to travel, DD1 and DS were symptom free. They both came down with spots mid holiday!

What a world of selfish beings we live in. No wonder why the planet is fucked

I've just checked out of interest, and it may well not be too late. I could book a chickenpox vaccine for tomorrow at the CityDoc clinic my kids got theirs done at (it's actually a pharmacist doing it in a pharmacy). They say they have 150 clinics nationwide, so there might well be one not so far from you.

If you’re vulnerable you probably should get vaccinated. The UK doesn’t have it on the standard schedule so any contact with young kids could result in infection as there’s always a chance one could have been exposed at school, at soft play etc. and the contagious stage starts 2 days before the rash.

Honestly if we were to cancel all plans every time one of my kids was exposed to an infectious illness I don’t think we’d ever leave the house, especially not in winter. Last month at school there was chickenpox, scarlet fever and whooping cough. If they’re well at the time of travel, you go. If they’re actually unwell and contagious on the day you go then you claim on the travel insurance. Most importantly don’t be an idiot and fail to take out travel insurance! It’s pretty simple really.

I'm ex cabin crew. If you do not get a fit to fly and the crew spot it on the ground they'll either refer to medilink(medical helpline type thing for advice which is likely to say that you'll need a fit to fly) or depending on the airline/ crew either off load you or ignore and hope for the best. This could be here or for the return. I'd hope check in/ ground staff would pick it up before boarding but ......

I pushed for family to be offloaded in Cancun because of chicken pox, I had a wedding the following week and didn't want to be ill. It delays the flight as luggage should be offloaded too so not a decision taken likely by an airline (it was obvious the child had chicken pox).

I'd check insurance and if booked through a package company like tui see what they advise as they may let you move it or have a voucher.

If you decide to go I'd make sure your insurance covers you adequately if you end up staying while/if your daughter gets a fit to fly home. It maybe that they only cover one adult to stay with her and either you or your husband would need to travel home with your son or pay for their flights/ expenses.

I agree there aren’t any further rules than you can’t fly if you have them. It’s an extremely tough dilemma to be in!!

• and that makes it ok to expose other travellers to be exposed for infection by your child?

No it doesn't.

thanks for your advice, as he is now I wouldn’t take him so I suppose I’ll just leave it down to the drs to decide about his fitness to fly. I have insurance if my daughter got unwell out there. Hopefully if she was to come down with it it will be after we return.

"I pushed for family to be offloaded in Cancun because of chicken pox, I had a wedding the following week and didn't want to be ill."

Why didn't you get the vaccine if you've not already had chicken pox? (Out of interest, nothing to do with that particular family)

Realistically you will beed to see a doctor on Friday for fit to fly letter or a letter to say you can’t. It normally takes a least 5 days from the last spot appearing to it crusting over. You may not get a fit to fly letter for DS.

I’m aware there are infections around all the time but taking a child with active spots from know chicken pox onto a flight as the previous poster did is really irresponsible.

Some women will be pregnant and not immune. Some people may be on immunosuppressant meds that render previous immunity useless and also mean they can’t be vaccinated. Some people will have reduced immunity due to age or medication like steroids.

Vulnerable people may well avoid places like soft play but unless they never want to go on holiday again they have to take their chances on planes. I appreciate there will be infections on there but is it too much to hope people don’t knowingly take a child with a known highly infectious disease on a plane?

Because airlines will only allow you to fly with Chickenpox once beyond the contagious stage (dry blistered stage).

Well like I said my reality!
a 2hr flight and have my child get sick in her own home and bed or deal with a week of hell in a Spanish dive, me and a toddler cooped up in a hotel room in the heat, on the possibility someone could catch it.
I would have cancelled had the insurance company reimbursed me but they wouldn’t.

you can get a fit to fly letter from an online dr . I’ve looked into it and if I can’t see my gp then I’ll ask him to be assessed by them.

@Traveljo I hope it all works out for you. If you do go maybe get a list of clinics/Dr's close to your accommodation and the airport. Take childrens antihistamines and calpol with you.

How the airport staff and crew react is anybodys guess, like anything it's down to them on the day and if they notice.

I hope you get to go and all enjoy your holiday in good health.

Doesn't make it any better. You knew you risked other travellers' health and broke the rules
to suit yourself. Sorry.

Why haven't you asked the OP why they haven't vaccinated their children then???

@Perzival thanks. I’d only take him if we got a fit to fly, if not I’ll be trying to claim on the insurance. If we do end up going then I’ll do all that just in case my daughter comes out with symptoms! Thanks ☺️

Totally agree, if they’re infectious when the plane leaves you call your travel insurance, not get on the plane. It’s the stage OP is in where it could be brewing that’s unfortunate but you have to go ahead because travel insurance isn’t going to pay out and you can’t not go based on a what-if.

@DSD9472 I totally forgot it was an option 🤦🏽‍♀️

It's one of the few vaccines that wasn't required for work and there was long list of them.

I had had chicken pox as a child but I didn't want to risk anything, why should I? They shouldn't have been flying. Not only that I didn't fancy dealing with an already porley child on a long flight at night. The child was in my sector.

My one year old got it recently and it took 3 weeks before my 4 year old caught it too.