Travel despite FCO advice
I have seen some posts from people who are going to travel to France or other countries currently on the FCO advisory list. Has anyone actually gone over? If so could you share your experience, getting on the ferry, train? How are things over there with regard to quarantine etc.
Hope you are all OK.
Richard
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Richard
Have you seen this thread here? https://www.caravanclub.co.uk/club-together/discussions/sites-touring/overseas-sites-touring/travelling-against-fco-advice/
David
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Richard, I have no personal experience but there are reports from recent travellers on the Brittany Ferries Enthusiasts forum which is worth looking at.
This photo is from that forum and dated 17 August 2020 on board one of the Portsmouth ferries - cars spaced in alternate lines, passengers with masks in public areas but encouraged to spend much of the journey in cabins, amount of traffic very light, which explains the company's decision to reduce services.
As things stand at the moment there is no need to quarantine on arrival in France, only on return to UK.
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Our SW local news reported this LINK
The analysis makes for careful reading as it looks as though BF is now dependent on "government cash" to keep it going. So apart from discussing what the on board conditions are like it might be worth considering the general booking implications.
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We had a gite booked in the Loire and should have arrived today for a week! - taking my brother and his wife (they had never done a ferry/Eurotunnel or mainland France before)
After a lot of soul searching we decided not to go. Didn't mind the quarantine on return but with the French threatening to reciprocate and us having to self isolate in France for 2 weeks on arrival we just didn't know what to do. Was afraid that we might get back to the tunnel and passport control saying you're not allowed to travel as you haven't isolated for two weeks.
Its cold, wet and windy here in South Yorkshire...feeling great!
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In todays press Stay Sure are offering travel insurance for countries that are on the FCO no go list such as Spain and France, at a premium of course, did not investigate further, still feel the risks are too great just now, prefer to be nearer to home
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That must be something new then Rufs, when I checked it out a week ago they only covered you if you had left the UK before going on the list. We did think about changing our destination to Italy and travelling through France,Germany and Austria but now that Austria is also on the list and Germany having a big increase in cases we have decided for now to give it a miss.
Currently on the Moray coast, just been along to watch the dolphins.
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they had a big add in the Mail on Sunday today, did not investigate further as we have now cxld and settled for the UK.
Currently on the Moray coast, just been along to watch the dolphins
stop it, loved the whole area and Scottish thing but unfortunately my OH suffers from raynauds quite badly, so the winters were becoming almost unbearable, even though they were not as severe as when we first moved, but i think it was an age thing also ,
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perhaps better off in the UK, Financial times report:-
"According to the latest figures from the EU’s European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Spain recorded 153 cases per 100,000 in the previous"
"But in Spain in particular the virus is now returning rapidly, with 8,000 new infections reported on Friday alone."
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Just had a look to see what Stay Sure do cover and it’s not straightforward. Their main page says;
COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Cover Update: Our policies cover Trip Cancellation, Emergency Medical and Repatriation Expenses, if you are affected by COVID-19 (coronavirus).
Cover only applies if the FCO have not advised against all or all but essential travel to your destination. Currently the FCO advises against travel to certain destinations such as; Spain (including Balearic & Canary Islands), France, USA, South & Central America, Africa, Central Asia and China. Please see gov.uk/foreign-travel-advicefor full details.
If the FCO has advised all but essential travel: Add our European FCO Travel Advice Extension to validate your cover. This won’t include COVID-19 Cover or cover for the reason behind the FCO travel advice.
I ran a quote and you can add cover for when the FCO advices against travel BUT that does NOT cover COVID-19 or the reason behind the advice. It says:
Allows cover for travel to a European Destinations where the FCO advise against all but essential travel (Europe cover also includes Egypt, Morocco, Turkey and Tunisia)
Extends emergency medical and repatriation cover*
Evacuation cover up to £1000 for additional travel and accommodation costs*
No cover is provided for reason the FCO advise against all but essential travel.
Cover for unused excursions up to £500
* subject to policy terms, conditions and exclusions. No cover for claims related to COVID-19.While it is reasonably clear, once you look at their site, they are not offering COVID-19 cover if FCO advice is against travel
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While it is reasonably clear, once you look at their site, they are not offering COVID-19 cover if FCO advice is against travel
As i said , i did not check out the conditions as we have cxld our trip, but this has all sorts of complications
e.g. if you get trapped in Spain as a result of a local lock down or border close say between France and Spain as a result of COVID-19, I guess they would say you are not covered, so i dont think it is as simple as if you catch covid-19 then you are not covered. Never trust insurance companies OH worked for one for many years so i should know
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David, I’ve solved your problem. Trade in the caravan, get yourself one these and cruise directly to Portugal. Who needs BF anyway?
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Excellent, have a great trip. Keeping my fingers crossed I can follow you in late October.
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Hi David, I hope thing work oh put with no last minute problems!
Have a great trip.0 -
Where’s your sense of adventure? Just close the sunroof and you’ll be fine.
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Go for it A.D...... and have a great time,life is full of wishes and not a rehearsal. People will be quarantining against Covid 19 and then catch a fatal dose of Flu or getting run over. Being sensible is one thing, condemning ones self to misery is needless.
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agreed and we are going to venture out for 1 month in the Uk starting next week after cxling our Spanish and French trips, and who wouldnt.
With 8000 new cases of covid per day in Spain and rising, and now renewed speculation that this week France will demand that all new arrivals into the country self isolate for 14 days at 1 given address.
Risks too great, for me, especially if it involves getting locked down
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This was the BF 14:00hrs Portsmouth to Caen yesterday, sorry quality not so good but had a job keeping on my feet wind was so strong and quite a lot of sea spray. As i watched her sail out i was wondering just how many Caravans/Mh's were onboard, and without any form of insurance, although it is possible to get some sort of insurance if you shop around despite the FCO warnings.
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Rufs can I ask where are you getting your figures from of 8000 cases per day for Spain? I'm not finding anything with that kind of cases.
Still hoping to get away overseas later this year in the MH, meantime we are having a few weeks away in the caravan in England.
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Yes they were from the FT, and i am pretty certain the figures were for Friday 21st Aug.
Was speaking to my daughter only yesterday, she has a holiday home in Santa Barbara Loja out towards Granada, and she mentioned a figure of 7,000, she said new measures were starting to be introduced to try and get on top of spread, e.g. you can longer smoke in public places unless you are 2m from nearest person, up for that, clubs and bars have to shut by 0100 hrs, she is moving back to Villa Martin today because there are rumours in the Spanish press that some regional lock downs may have to be enforced and she is currently in the province of Granada but lives in the region of Valencia, bordering on Murcia and has been told by her school she has to return next Tuesday, so she does not want to be locked out. She did say, that like the UK, nobody knows exactly what is going on or what measures will be put in place, but there are a lot of figures on the web, did see this which is as at 26th Aug 2020
EU/EEA and the UK Cases Deaths 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100 000 14-day cumulative number of COVID-19 deaths per 100 000
Spain 412553 28924 183.1 0.7P.S/ found this from 19th Aug.
OVIEDO, Spain
Over 6,600 more COVID-19 infections were reported in Spain on Wednesday, reaffirming that the country has again become one of the worst-affected regions in the world.
the 183.1 is the number of cases per 100,000 persons which is very high, highest in the EU, i think the UK is in the high 20's
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