Today I had a chat with neighbours who own a second home on the C Blanca. Walking distance from where I normally rent several times a year. They informed me of Jet2 flights to ALC advertised from mid June and were trying to decide whether to book flights or drive out. They already have a car in Spain.
What do you think are the chances of these flights departing 6 weeks from now ? I’m tempted myself..Normally i return to the U.K. late March then spend the middle two weeks of May back in Spain then avoid the CB ( crowds, heat and higher rental prices) until late September.
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>>What do you think are the chances of these flights departing 6 weeks from now ?
Pretty good. I have several flights this season, I am reasonably confident and expect to be on them.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Tue 5 May 20 at 22:55
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Reason I asked is that I’ve organised a 2 weeks walking holiday for friends late June, early July. The coast paths of both Jersey then Guernsey. The Guernsey hotel have just cancelled our booking...informed us they won’t be open then ( early July). I’m waiting to hear from the Jersey hotel, but have a Jet2 flight booked to Jersey late June, returning to LBA early July with Aurigny Air.
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Have never been to Jersey but its on my visit list - worth a visit? Heard that it can be an expensive break?
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>> Have never been to Jersey but its on my visit list - worth a visit?
>> Heard that it can be an expensive break?
Worked there for two years in the 80s, got friends on the island, was planning to take the dog over to compete in their show.. Expensive? so so, about the same as the uk, worth a trip? above going for a weekend, no way jose you quickly run out of places to go and things to do.
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Having last visited Jersey in the seventies and having fond memories of the place we went back there three years ago. The place has changed a lot. What was once a holiday island has now largely abandoned tourism and its economy is based on financial services and tax avoidance.
Most of its hotels have been turned into flats and offices. It has a huge traffic, problem and is horrendously expensive. Think London prices plus. Agriculture has all but been abandoned, the Jersey cattle I remember tethered in the small field are gone. Potato growing, once the backbone of the economy has been abandoned.
The North of the island is still unspoiled and very pretty, reminiscent of North Devon. and good for walking. Wouldn’t go again though Nearby Brittany and Normandy offer far better value and the food and drink are vastly superior
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>> Most of its hotels have been turned into flats and offices. It has a huge
>> traffic, problem and is horrendously expensive. Think London prices plus. Agriculture has all but been
Went for 5 days in 2000 with our two young kids at the time. Stayed in a reasonable hotel and had a good time.
You are correct CGN the hotel is now a new block of flats.
Shame as it was one of those places that did B and B to full board and employed quite a few staff.
The zoo is quite good.
Went out on a 737 and back on a much smaller substituted BAE 146. First experience of clear air turbulence in that with unbuckled passengers coming out of their seats. Both kids looked at their terrified parents with broad grins and asked if we could “do that again”!
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>> Went out on a 737 and back on a much smaller substituted BAE 146. First
>> experience of clear air turbulence in that with unbuckled passengers coming out of their seats.
>> Both kids looked at their terrified parents with broad grins and asked if we could
>> “do that again”!
You should try flying on a Aurigny Airways Britten-Norman Trislander in a gusty wind, now that is errr "exciting"
Last edited by: Zero on Wed 6 May 20 at 13:59
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>> You should try flying on a Aurigny Airways Britten-Norman Trislander in a gusty wind, now
>> that is errr "exciting"
I flew - IIRC - to the Isle of Man on one of those those things.....
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Out of curiosity what "precautions" would you take if you were getting on a crowded plane in 5 weeks?
2 metres between passengers queuing at check in desk?
2 metres between passengers queuing to get on the plane?
Every passenger grabbing hold of the handrail going up the stairs to plane?
Thats stupid hanging around as everyone puts their luggage in lockers
Then sitting with strangers all around you with a wide range of differing attitude to risk from folks wearing masks to folk getting tanked up for their holidays?
Queuing 2 m apart at the luggage carousel?
And while on the subject, I assume Corona Virus will automatically be excluded from Travel Insurance policies?
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Glib answer is that I survived my flight home from Alicante late March, on a plane filled to capacity, with a fair proportion of happy drunks. After isolating in Spain for the previous week it was a concern.
Hence why I’m thinking of driving out...once at the airport it’s a lottery and you roll the dice. Even getting into the car hire out there it’s possible you could get CV19.
Backpacking the Wales Coast Path seems a far safer bet at the moment..
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>>Even getting into the car hire out there it’s possible you could get CV19.
It's possible you could find a winning lottery ticket in the ashtray as well. But pretty damned unlikely.
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Hahaha. You could get kinda paranoid about it quite easily. I’m probably a bit too blasé truth be told. Finishing off a barrel of beer with friends tonight (sat outside in a garden, not a pub lock in) at times we were only 2’ apart when I reached across the patio set for a handful of peanuts.
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There may be flights, or you may pay the money and then get cancelled. If cancelled you probably face a long wait to get your money back - the airlines are being a bit dilatory about refunds at the moment.
You also need to ask yourself how much you want to go. Local regulation may mean bars and restaurants are still closed. It may even be that to rescue a local economy reliant on touriism, they will be taking something of a risk in getting tourists into the resort.
Covid 19 will not disappear in June - it will (at best) be at a low level, and at worst rapidly rising through relaxation of lockdown at too fast a pace.
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I wouldn't be going in June but I am planning to go to Portugal in late Sept, and yesterday completed bookings for accomodation and flights there next March/April.
The flights for March were nearly £200 without the extra legroom and luggage I normally buy and I am committed to accom costs of about £280 (rest could be refunded under cancellation policy). I'd normally have booked airport parking too but I'm leaving the non-essentials till nearer the time as I am not expecting my insurance to cover any costs if I choose or am otherwise unable to go, so am minimising the amount I might lose. I do have a return journey credit on Eurotunnel so could drive if I didn't fancy flying, but that would mean hotel stops en route.
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Am I correct in thinking you have an electric car smokie? If so, then driving to Portugal would be an interesting logistical exercise.
I booked my airport parking for 2 periods, May and June, and cancelled them recently. As I did the booking through a third party on the MSE website there was a cancellation fee. A friend who booked directly with Sentinel at LBA and cancelled received his refund in full.
I also cancelled my Spanish hire car (9-23 May) and received a refund in full from ‘Do You Spain’.
Think I need to get my act together and buy a place out there once I’ve downsized in the U.K.
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I have a PHEV. Autocar say
"Unlike conventional hybrids, which can be best described as combustion-engined cars backed up by electric assistance, the Vauxhall Ampera is primarily powered by electric motors but has a four-cylinder combustion engine and generator to keep the car running when the batteries are exhausted."
Electric range is only about 35 - 40 miles in the right conditions. But I could run on the ICE when the main battery runs out, so long trips are perfectly do-able.
However I think we'd use the other car (SWMBOs Yaris hybrid) for a foreign trip partly because it wasn't cheap yet is just sitting there doing < 1k miles a year at the moment!!
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Flights recommenced a week ago from LBA to Spain. Apparently there are tourists flying out, in addition to second home owners.
The FO website is still advising against all but essential overseas travel, so am I right in assuming that in the event of a claim on your travel insurance whilst overseas, be it medical or whatever, it would be declined by the insurer ?
And would your EHIC card still be valid?
I’ve just registered on the FO website to receive an email update should this advice after...specifically with regard to Spain. Until the FO advice says it’s ok to go to sunny Spain I’ll be staying in Blighty.
Wouldn’t want to be kicked in the cobblers by a donkey and have to pay for your own medical treatment.
Last edited by: legacylad on Sun 28 Jun 20 at 00:29
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>> The FO website is still advising against all but essential overseas travel, so am I
>> right in assuming that in the event of a claim on your travel insurance whilst
>> overseas, be it medical or whatever, it would be declined by the insurer ?
>> And would your EHIC card still be valid?
You'd need to check with insurers but I'm sure I read somewhere that some were willing to cover for normal risks like trips/slips, appendicitis (so probably a kick in the cobblers too) in the EU. I suspect however if you come down with Covid or are stranded because lockdown is re-instated you might be on your own.
It's also likely that FO advice will change shortly. In normal circumstances travelling against FO advice would be, at best, a specialist insurance market but the usual reason for such advice is war or civil unrest. I don't see most EU countries as posing a significantly higher risk than UK for either unrest or epidemic.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Sun 28 Jun 20 at 10:52
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I renewed my annual LV multi trip insurance a few days ago. I rang them to confirm a few details, and pretty sure they said that new business would not include CV medical cover should you contract it whilst overseas. That makes sense....I’ve no plans to leave the UK until September anyway.
Hopefully I’ll get to Wales before then for a week or so backpacking more of the coast path
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I have to go overseas to visit my ill father. I needed specific permission to enter the country (Israel) and to get that I had to show that I had insurance that would cover me if I was hospitalised with Covid-19.
I assumed this was a polite way of telling me to go away, but no. I spoke with Caxton who provide my annual travel insurance and I was covered. No sure if they would cover me when I need to renew, but I was also able to find a local medical insurance policy that would cover me for all my medical needs whilst there for up to a year and it also included cover for Covid-19.
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Listening to Martin Lewis this morning, he said no mainstream travel insurance company would cover you for Covid-19 if you travel against government advice.
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If the government arrange reciprocal "travel corridors" with other countries, it is possible insurance may cover you.
For all other countries I suspect it will be a bit of a small print lottery. If you have an absolute personal need or it is required at the point of entry, then you need to accept the risk.
Whilst I can understand why people may want to travel for family reasons or perhaps own property overseas, it beats me why anyone would want to go right now:
- the journey will be less pleasant (by quite a margin) than a normal airport, flight experience
- at your destination it will not be business as usual fun in the sun. Local rules will control distancing, clubs may be shut, hotels with staggered dining times, no frolicing in the pool, etc etc.
Personally I would wait for a return to at least some degree of normality!
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Why would you travel knowing that you haven’t got comprehensive insurance ?...although there are plenty of people who do in normal times. Please CrowdFund me to bring my body home or pay my medical bills in Timbuktu because I couldn’t be assed to take out insurance.
Get lost!
At least my 92yo mum knows the risks and accepts that returning in my hand luggage is always an option at her age.
I’ll decide in a few months whether to fly out or drive, and that is dependent upon FO advice.
Last edited by: legacylad on Mon 29 Jun 20 at 11:34
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I agree, I reckon once travel corridors are established FCO advice will change and insurance cover will be available. And if you have an existing policy taken out before COVID it’ll probably cover that too (with a bit of squirming by the insurers)
I’ll be taking the car over to France as soon as I can; eurotunnel would appear to be straightforward from a social distancing perspective; drive south, rent a gite, eat in cafes and bars outside. What’s not to like :)
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Whether they’re mainstream or not I have no idea, but Staysure, who claim to have been voted the UKs best travel insurance provider for the last four years at the British Travel Awards (whatever they are), emailed me recently to say that they would provide for COVID-19 if contracted while on holiday, though not if contracted before travel, and offered 15 months cover for the price of 12! I imagine the chances of catching it and it being bad enough to manifest itself while on a one or two week holiday are low, so it’s window dressing more than anything. But cover would be appear to be available. The bigger issue is that FCO advice is not to travel unless essential, and many polices don’t provide cover if you travel when the FCO advise against it, COVID or no COVID.
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I got a quote from Staysure for an annual policy at the weekend and it looked pretty good, even taking into account the small amounts of meds I now have to take each day. Mine isn't due for a few months (Sept I think) but I may well forfeit some of that to insure with them.
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I’m hoping/anticipating the FCO advice changes by late September as I’ve just booked a flight to Spain 27/09.
Last edited by: legacylad on Fri 3 Jul 20 at 14:04
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Seems that from next Friday the quarantine requirement goes for a host of countries with infection rates less than or comparable to our own. I assume at that point advice will change too.
Ryanair restarted flights from LBA last week and seem to have 4-6 flights daily.
Mrs B's brother is with them from Carcasonne to Dublin tomorrow. He's been marooned in France, albeit at his own place, since flights stopped in March. Because he's had a run in with pneumonia before he's VERY cautious about (eg) trying to get home via Paris.
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>>Because he's had a run in with pneumonia before he's VERY cautious
I have pneumonia about 6 - 8 weeks ago. I couldn't get a convincing, or consistent, answer as to whether or not that made me more or less likely to suffer with COVID-19 badly in the sort term.
More bad - because the lungs were already bit messed up
Less bad - I was already swimming in drugs designed to keep the lungs working.
I've obviously played safe and done nothing / gone nowhere.
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>> I’m hoping/anticipating the FCO advice changes by late September as I’ve just booked a flight
>> to Spain 27/09.
I don't think we know any more than to say it could go either way. Will UK be in a good state? What will be the Spanish attitude to UK travellers by then?
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I’d read that FCO advice might change as early as next weekend. Anyway, I’ve booked the eurotunnel to France early August, a flight to Alicante in September and am just pondering where abouts in Greece to go in October
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I wouldnt go anywhere abroad this year, the chances of being locked down, locked out or trapped at a moments notice there or here is too much risk for me.
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Future tourist flights soon ? - No FM2R
