I can see the bloody annoying situation whereby the rest of the EU is happily effectively open for (socially distanced) limited tourism by we here aren't allowed to leave our shores to partake by the rabidly antiEU Govt...
So it looks like my holiday plans can be cancelled
With four weeks to go before our Lake garda and Alps trip we have finally decided to put it on hold and rather than cancel have got the agreement for the same dates in 2021.
Will be contacting the tunnel nearer the time to see what can be done.
With a bit of luck we will get some trips in the UK July and August and are holding fire on cancelling the Sospel, San Remo and Finale trip for late September till nearer the time
Quarantining us if we go to europe probably makes sense, but at this point every european that comes here makes us all statistically slightly safer. If I was one of the countries that did the right, hard thing I'd be very wary about people from a country that's still ****ing it up coming over and undoing even a tiny part of it...
Even if you believed you could get to Greece or other wise.
Do you think you'd be able to relax with the fluidity of the situation ?
Canada not EU, but we've just had final accommodation pull out booking and AirTransat aren't flying until 31st June (we were going on 25th), plus Canadian press is suggestion even if/ when they start up in July there will be 2-week, one address, no going out quarantine for all arrivals.
It makes sense to form a travel "bubble" with countries with similar levels of new cases. So for UK that would be ****stan Bangladesh Iran Saudi Arabia.
EU? No chance 🙁
Quite frankly, with the exception of maybe USA who are in turmoil with COVID-19 handling and more recently the George Floyd protests, I'm expecting most countries including the EU to either ban UK tourists or put them under strict quarantine entry.
Heck, the way things are going, I'm not confident my sister or I can legally head from England to see our mum over the border in Wales this summer.
Would be surprised if any international travel is allowed while our infection rate is where it is.
why on earth would other countries risk importing more cases from basket case countries who can't control covid infections
Supposed to have been arriving in Canada today:(
Just started looking at ferries to Ireland in September/ October, hopefully that will be doable.
Edit: wrong thread
I can see the bloody annoying situation whereby the [s]rest of the EU[/s] is happily effectively open
*All of the EU
I half expect a de facto border with controls between scotland and england. The "local area only" being the excuse and the reason being that england goes back into full pandemic
I had that very thought yesterday TJ.
That won't happen.
Has anyone seen these quarantine rules yet? I'm trying to find out how they work. In particular if I'm quarantined on arrival for 14 days, could I leave the country after say, 5 days?
Says here I could, but it's hardly official...
if I’m quarantined on arrival for 14 days, could I leave the country after say, 5 days?
I havent seen the detail of the law yet (dont think anyone has...), but I dont see how you could leave part way through your quarantine, based on the fact that everything that has been talked about says you need to go to your residence (or wherever you are staying) and not leave there for 14 days, no going out in public, no having people to visit etc.
My money is on the quarantine being not required for certain countries, and I reckon most eu countries will be on the 'not required' to quarantine list.
Who is going to carry liability for cancelled holidays in future?
I'd imagine it will be automatically excluded from insurance from now on.
With there being a fair possibility the holiday could be cancelled, who carries that risk?
why on earth would other countries risk importing more cases from basket case countries who can’t control covid infections
Like the UK government allowed for months? 🙄
Who is going to carry liability for cancelled holidays in future?
I’d imagine it will be automatically excluded from insurance from now on.
It already is excluded from some insurance policies , or at least its excluded from my insurance. AFter the FCO announced in March (on or around march 11th) that you shouldnt travel abroad, my insurance company sent out comms saying that any trips that were booked after that date would not be covered for issues relating to cv19. They're still insuring trips booked before that date.
With there being a fair possibility the holiday could be cancelled, who carries that risk?
It will depends who cancels it. If you cancel (ie choose not to go) then thats the same as usual. If the company you booked with cancels, then it wil be down to ABTA rules (if they're a member), or the companies policies/consumer law if they're not. and then if you booked on your credit card you may have some ability to claim the cost back from the credit card company. BUt regardless of what the rules/law etc say, actually getting to firm to comply and give you a refund could prove tricky, as ryanair are demonstrating right now.
Ultimately you need to proceed carefully because its your money you're risking.
We got stiffed by yellow jersey who excluded such things when we booked in January. Seems we could have paid for an extra insurance module to cover it but they probably don't exist or will be prohibitively expensive from now on.
Has anyone seen these quarantine rules yet? I’m trying to find out how they work. In particular if I’m quarantined on arrival for 14 days, could I leave the country after say, 5 days?
Says here I could, but it’s hardly official…
With so many things going on I could easily be wrong, but reading between the lines of Boris' bluster and France's position up to now, it's almost as if we're having a bit of a trade argument with them. France being the most visited country in the world of tourism, the UK being it's largest 'customer' and France our biggest 'supplier'.
The French government first wanted a 14 day quarantine for all visitors to France once it lifted it's current rules. This got bashed about because it would obviously kill tourism for them. Tourism in France is worth €200bn a year and creates around 1.1m jobs. They're still debating whether to waive it for EU countries (of which we would be included until the end of the transfer period) or just the Schengen area (which we are not part of) or whether to only apply it to travellers who arrive by plane.
Our proposed quarantine has been reported as being a tit for tact response to theirs, I think the reason why we don't know much about it, is because we never planned to have one.
Assuming it's practical and safe for any tourism this summer the French and UK governments will want to strike a trade deal of sorts. If by when the Holiday season really kicks off in Mid-July both countries are largely out of lock-down and into 'new normal' there seems little reason not to (flying is a whole other thing, but most travel between France and the UK is car based).
This will set the stage for travel rules with other countries. I think flying is going to be really tricky though.
not leave there for 14 days, no going out in public,
yep, that is going to make it impossible to actually do anything I'm there for.
Tempted to make a run for it this weekend before they implement it (assuming no U turn)
Our proposed quarantine has been reported as being a tit for tact response to theirs
Chronologically it happened the other way around, the UK acted first, that's how I remember it and that's how it's reported:
The British quarantine was seen as a reaction to Barnier's publication on the state of Brexit negotiations which was scathing. The report managed a few positive paragraphs and then got down to the question of unfair competetion and raised a digit.
It doesn't really matter if UK accepts tourists with no quarantine - once they have completed their Holiday in Covodia they will have to do 14 days quarantine when they go home to their own country! Why would anybody want to do that?
Anyone booked with Easyjet should try and check their flights as they've started to change the schedules. It looks like Luton to Geneva is going to be on the cull list and there will only be one flight a day from Gatwick to Geneva
If you just use the google booking for your destination it'll show any changes
Due to go to whiteroom in July I was still open to going even with quarantine as only an extra 4 days off work due to my shift pattern.
It appears my flights don't exist now manchester to geneva / Geneva to Liverpool
Had and email from easyjet saying my travel plans were on the hacked list but no word about all the Extra canceled flights
@mehr noticed yesterday that the Luton flights seemed to have disappeared. We're supposed to be flying out on the 11th July for a week. We're both of the mindset, as are the friends we're going with, that we don't really want to go anyway now. Hopefully the guiding company will deffer till next year and the flights get refunded.
Was also hoping to get to whiteroom early July. Although flights appear on the easyJet site everyone is sold out. I'm resigned to not going.
Was also hoping to get to whiteroom early July. Although flights appear on the easyJet site everyone is sold out. I’m resigned to not going.
Judging by pricing on available flights 'sold out' is a euphemism for 'we've cancelled that flight'
Flights to Geneva from Gatwick are all in the £20-£30 range, interspersed with lots of 'sold outs' - if they were genuinely sold out then prices for the available seats would have a 0 tacked on the end.
Judging by pricing on available flights ‘sold out’ is a euphemism for ‘we’ve cancelled that flight
That's exactly what it is, if you use Google flight search it looks like easyJet are down to one direct flight per day from Manchester and Gatwick
I cannot imagine being able to enjoy a holiday abroad this year. A holiday is supposed to be for getting away from all of the everyday shite.
I'll be supporting the UK travel industry this year, when I'm allowed.
We'd booked a mid-July trip to French Alps back in November. Fully accept that's not happening at all now. Cancelled ferry 2 weeks ago and lost our £75 deposit rather than pay the full balance and have it tied up in vouchers etc.
However, currently got £500 tied up with a French campsite who won't refund, citing "In accordance with Regulation 2020-315 of March 25, 2020 from the French government, you will receive a refund in the form of a voucher in the amount of the amounts already paid. The voucher is valid for booking a future stay in 2020 or 2021. You can use this for a period of 18 months for a stay"
Anyone else had this regulation quoted to them?
Vouchers no good to us as not expecting to be able to travel to mainland Europe next year due to work. Also, the campsite's changed hands twice in the past 10 years, so quite plausible it could change ownership again before next summer nullifying any vouchers.
Now in a stalemate with the campsite and not sure what else I can do to recover the £500...
(Original Ts&Cs cancellation policy at time we booked in Nov 2019 allowed cancellation with full refund minus admin fee up to 30 days before arrival)
@ally The regulation you're being quoted is a new law that was passed by the French government right at the start of the covid-19 crisis in order to prevent a total melt-down of the tourist industry. The campsite are totally within their rights, according to this law, to deny you a refund and issue a voucher for a future trip, valid for up to 18 months. What they may not be entirely forthcoming about is that, if you wait out the 18 months, they are obliged to issue a refund at that point.
Few people on this thread hoping to make it out to us this summer so I'm not going to get into too many specifics as we've obviously got a lot of skin in the game (other than that we'd love to see anyone who can get here!) so I'll just add, for everyone in the travel industry, this is a seriously tough time. A lot of people are staring down the barrel through no fault of their own, with their homes and livelihoods potentially at risk. If you are able to reclaim money through travel insurance, even rather than shifting dates, please do so. Please try to avoid the nuclear option of recovering funds through credit card supplier too, as they will take the funds directly back from the recipient without warning or discussion - it is NOT the same as claiming on insurance! Talk to people and try to work with holiday providers as flexibly as possible, recover funds through insurance if you can, that's what it's for. Nobody wants to piss you off or screw you over, but plenty of people are facing really tough choices. Even just putting your trip off until next year is a double-whammy for the industry - they don't get your money this year, then lose out on the chance to sell another trip next year.
Not referring to any specifics of our own trips here at all, actually feeling pretty lucky that we're getting decent government support and that our guests have been super-supportive, just trying to wave a general flag for the travel industry at this time!
If you are booked with us this summer, you should have heard from us more than once already, but just drop us an email or pick up the phone if you need more info or want to know the latest!
I finally given up on it.
Air BnB have agreed we can switch our Morzine accom to the same dates in 2021, we're taking a bit of a punt on Passportes being the same "last weekend in June" it always is. Easyjet have given us vouchers for flights.
We're supposed to be in a Eurocamp near Paris at the end of July, they're offering a free transfer to 2021 of the value of whatever you've paid them. We've decided to spend a bit more for next year on a longer hols over 2 places in France so that suits me just fine.
@stevomcd yeah, we were even wondering how late the season might go and slide later in the year and Scotland is still level 4 and travel outwith area for "fun" doesn't kick in until level2 so looks as though we're stymied. I sent an email not long ago cheers.
French quarantine is voluntary, your problem is coming home.
Good luck @stevomcd, that's brutal.
@ally I was quoted that, trying to get a refund on a hotel booking. We use the hotel a few times a year though, so the voucher will get used
I finally given up on it.
I think thats going to be me as well, getting to Gatwick isn't a fun experience. Plus it'll add a large chunk onto the holiday costs
I think thats going to be me as well, getting to Gatwick isn’t a fun experience. Plus it’ll add a large chunk onto the holiday costs
We were planning to drive which avoided a lot of problem (at least it seemed so) it was my Wife that finally made the decision and she's way more into Holidays than me. Yes we could *probably* get there, and *probably* get back using the Tunnel, but what if we get there and you can't go in the pool, you can't sit in the bars, you can't sit in the restaurants etc? We would have spent a few grand and hours stuck in the car to spend a week in a plastic 'Chalet' that's way smaller and less comfortable than our house.
It's just not in my nature to give up and quit at the first (or fifteenth) hurdle, but at some point it just seems like a lot of work to do something that's going to be a bit of a chore the whole time.
I'm going to book a weekend in Bluestone in Sept, it's only an hour or two in the car and if it's not worth going, it's not so much money I'll cry about it.
We are due in France back end of August I've paid a few hundred quid and dont need to pay rest til back end of July, I'm hoping we manage to go by then, but if it looks doubtful I'm just not paying the remainder due and losing the deposit. I'm not particularly worried about Corona as I'm currently recovering from it as is the mrs as I caught it at work, selfish maybe but I still social distance and stick to to rules I'm just not worried about catching it any more
what if we get there and you can’t go in the pool, you can’t sit in the bars, you can’t sit in the restaurants etc?
None of those things are an issue. They're all open again already. As are the chairlifts.
Please try to avoid the nuclear option of recovering funds through credit card supplier too, as they will take the funds directly back from the recipient without warning or discussion – it is NOT the same as claiming on insurance!
How ever my(post office) insurance will ask if you have paid by cc and have requested you do a charge back first before processing the remainder of the claim not settled by charge back. The consumer rightly or wrongly rarely has a choice in the matter.
As it happened air BnB changed their rules to reflect the goings on of the time.
Our week in Croatia became a week at home with some local walking. Still waiting on the refund for flights.
We've been discussing future family travel options and have decided that 2020 will be basically "written off"
We might consider a UK mini break later in the year if conditions allow but we'd rather sit tight for now.
What we have decided on is not flying in 2020/2021. The kids are old enough now and hopefully we'll both be able to take a chunk of leave (2+ weeks) around July/August, so we can do a mini European tour by train which I think we'll all really enjoy...
Please try to avoid the nuclear option of recovering funds through credit card supplier too, as they will take the funds directly back from the recipient without warning or discussion – it is NOT the same as claiming on insurance!
How ever my(post office) insurance will ask if you have paid by cc and have requested you do a charge back first before processing the remainder of the claim not settled by charge back. The consumer rightly or wrongly rarely has a choice in the matter.
That's interesting, because Visa are saying the opposite- you must exhaust all other avenues first.
Steve's comment above I'm not sure about- for a credit card reversal under Section 75, no provision of services/goods, the merchant has to be informed, and has time to dispute before it can be actioned. A chargeback is a different type of transaction, usually only applied to debit card payments/bank transfers.
