Travel despite FCO advice
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Taken from the UK Gov website
If necessary, and you have a long journey within the UK to arrive at your self-isolation accommodation, you can stop overnight in safe accommodation before continuing your journey. You must self-isolate and provide the address of your overnight stop on your passenger locator form.
It would appear from that you are allowed to stay overnight on your journey home in the UK.
I agree that some folk would not mention where they had come from and just book a night on a site somewhere. If they behave responsibly and keep to themselves that shouldn't be an issue, the issue would be that you have to go into reception to pay.
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As it happens we are ok as we have 2 ferries already booked direct with BF.
They have been moved from this years also booked flexi.
We also have a tunnel crossing booked through the club, now also moved to next year.
I was thinking more about others who probably took a refund and would have to start all over again.
How did they apply the refund, just curious as one of ours will need to move again and it may be a cheaper crossing we use.
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Despite what the FCO says it looks as though the Spanish prime minister means business
quote from FR24 news today
Pedro Sanchez is expected to shut down Spain on Friday, September 18 as the nation fights to contain the increase in coronavirus outbreaks in Spain.
The nation, which is beginning to wage a losing battle against the pandemic, has seen a sharp rise in COVID-19 nationwide and the government has set September 18 as the date to impose lockdown rules on its citizens, according to the reports. ministers of Congress.
While the previous lockdown saw a three-phase release, starting September 18, the overall plan is to introduce a three-phase lockdown.
The first phase will see if plans go ahead, see regional lockdown, which will prevent Spanish citizens from traveling outside their residential municipalities, as well as border closures with France, Portugal and Italy aside. for essential trade passages. The first phase will also see the cessation of non-essential passenger flights from Europe.
Unquote
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Tammy, you seem to have bought rather a lot of tickets.
Your B/F tickets are only valid for 12 months from the original date of outward travel.
If you have one of the B/F refund credit vouchers that will show an expiry date - which is not the date by which you must travel but the date by which you must present it for payment.
But I don't know the validity of the tunnel ticket bought from the club - not something I have ever done.
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France having a surge also, new measures to be put in place
FR news today...
France recorded just a few hundred new infections a day in May and June, but the number started to rise in July as the country ramped up testing. Daily cases surpassed 5,000 on Wednesday for the first time since May.
France now records more than 50 positive tests per 100,000 inhabitants in Paris, Marseille and elsewhere. The government announced Thursday that 21 of the 101 administrative regions, or departments, are now in the “red zone” where the virus is actively circulating, and where local authorities can impose stricter rules on gatherings and movements.
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Thanks ET, will look into that.
The tunnel has a 12mth limit on it so we know we must use that by 28th June next year.
The BF ones are a bit more complicated as the journey for the 15th April 2020, Portsmouth to Bilbao which BF cancelled, we had a voucher valid for 2 years. We recently used that to book a crossing for April 2021 on a flexi ticket same route.
The booking for June this year (should have been the return journey) Caen - Portsmouth was on a flexi ticket. We moved to October this year hoping to be able to get out in September. That will need to move again.
The revised idea was that we would go out September this year on the tunnel and come home on the Caen - Portsmouth crossing.
Now that is not happening, the tunnel has been moved to February (new dates not yet released for tunnel) Its looking very likely that we won't be able to go anywhere this year, so it leaves us with a problem of using the ones due to expire in June 2021.
I'm thinking that if we have to use the Caen - Portsmouth crossing by June next year and also the Tunnel crossing that can be done, go out April/May on one come home June on the other.
The Portsmouth to Bilbao outbound for April 2021 could then be moved to the Autumn 2021. I think that would work providing we are allowed to travel at those times. If not then I guess we will have to cancel the ferries and lose our deposits. The tunnel is non refundable so that might well be a blow. The CAMC might extend it due to all the restrictions from the Government but who knows I won't hold my breath on that.
Things could change in the next couple of months and we might get out to Germany for the Christmas markets using the MH
we are very flexible and are used to last minute changes. I've spend years working holidays round the Army, I'm determined Covid will not beat me 
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Phil
What we don't know is how the other Club and commercial sites are dealing with this situation, unless anyone else has heard differently? Anyone returning could always stay at a motorway service station even if only for a few hours rest and if they remained in their van everyone would be safe. On a campsite of course not only reception but the toilet block would be a weak point.
David
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If club sites can survive until the end of August with no reported cases of corvid-19 on any site, then i think they will have done remarkably well, so one has to assume that wardens and campers have co-operated to make this happen, so if by eliminating people that have travelled from overseas and need to self isolate the risk is reduced even further then that is good news for all.
Anyone returning could always stay at a motorway service station even if only for a few hours rest and if they remained in their van everyone would be safe.
My solution also and i dont even use club sites.
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If using a CCC site you don't go into reception they greet you at the entrance to the site, you can easily keep the window closed.
If you select a site where the facilities are not in use then you wouldn't need to go into the facility block.
Stopping for a few hours on a motorway car park wouldn't be enough sleep if you have already driven that day from say German, then through France to the tunnel. Depending on where you live it could be a further 12 -14 hour drive (it is for us) one has to think about safety behind the wheel.
According to the Gov UK site you can even stay in a hotel for the night as long as you declare it on the 'locator form'
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Looks like the FCO made a good decision
BBC-News
France has recorded its biggest daily rise in coronavirus infections since March, as President Emmanuel Macron raised the possibility of another nationwide lockdown.
A further 7,379 cases were confirmed on Friday, bringing the country's total to 267,077
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Not going to be helped by the TDF. Picture is of the set up for the introduction before the start today. Rows are separated but seats certainly aren't .☹️ That's even before you get possibly 21 days of close together folk at popular places on the course. I love watching it but what are they thinking running it this year?
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agree, shocking, much the same as some other sports in the UK, football , how they can contemplate even having 50% capacity when you have fans screaming and shouting i would want to be more than 2mtrs apart
, but pleased the FCO seem to be getting something right even if it is causing some financial heartache in some areas and loss of holidays, should have been on Portsmouth - Caen ferry 1st Sept, glad we cxld.0 -
I am sorry at the stories I read of tangled cross channel reservations - the detailed study of terms and conditions for refund vouchers, credit notes, amendments, cancelled sailings, re routed ferries, and cash backs that don't arrive.
It's taught me a clear lesson - to sit tight until next Spring and wait till we decide to travel. Then a few days in advance buy a one way ferry ticket - the cheapest of the three grades of Brittany Ferries tickets - because at that point it won't need any alteration. And then when we are ready to come home fire up this I- pad and do the same again - one way ticket home.
There's no way I would pay money to a ferry company weeks or months in advance.
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Certainly agree about middle-men, try and avoid them in all circumstances, but especially holiday bookings. The compulsory ‘booking fee’ variety are particularly annoying but that’s another story.....
I’ve reluctantly decided to roll my Plymouth/Santander October booking forward. It was a one-way trip so France is part of the package. However, I keep getting this annoying message when attempting the booking amendment....”Sorry, this booking is already locked by HORIZONUK Please wait 10 minutes before attempting to recall this booking on the website”. Have you had similar problems?
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The original question post on here was to hear from people who have actually been to France !
We have just come back from two idyllic weeks in Finisterre, staying at our regular site in Lesconil.
Sites were moderately full very few Brits ( hooray!), many nice relaxed French and a scattering of Germans. Sites were well run, very clean, and with an expectation that masks would be worn in site offices, shops and toilet bocks. Towns have a requirement for masks to be worn is shops and in outdoor markets and this was rigoroulsy observed. Entry to bars and restaurants require masks to be won, the removed once seated. general impression was of people getting on with their lives despite Cornovirus, and we went with the swing. We have never bothered with separate health insurance, the French health service is good and we relied as we have done for 30 years on EHIC.
Brittany Ferries ran a slick operation, well spaced zones on the car deck and spacing out rejoining vehicles on arrival.
We had a wonderful relaxed holiday. Any regrets? None apart from having to come home. Would I go again. Absolutely yes.
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Thank you David,
I have a similar question posted on BF Enthusiasts forum which has digressed into discussion about masks.
We are travelling on Monday and will discover for ourselves how things are. When contacted by the club about our trip we asked how many people were going ahead with their travel plans. They couldn’t give a number but quite a few by the sound of it.
Far from being reckless we will maintain our safe behaviours in France and on the way back. We are totally self contained and if we need to stop we have lay-bys identified.
Wherever you decide to go, stay safe, hopefully next year will be easier on us all.
Richard
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Enjoy your trip, Richard 🙂. We had a booking with BF for next week, but decided to amend it, not because of any concerns regarding France, just worried that local, UK travel restrictions might be brought in at very short notice. (We live in Pendle Borough, a virus “hot spot” at the moment).
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It's taught me a clear lesson - to sit tight until next Spring and wait till we decide to travel. Then a few days in advance buy a one way ferry ticket - the cheapest of the three grades of Brittany Ferries tickets - because at that point it won't need any alteration. And then when we are ready to come home fire up this I- pad and do the same again - one way ticket home.
There's no way I would pay money to a ferry company weeks or months in advance.
ET, on some insurances ours in particular, the insurance is not valid if you don't have a return ticket booked at the time of departure. That among other reasons was why we changed from using the club for bookings and now book direct with BF using a friends code. With the Flexi booking we could now make a booking for return but we are not held to that if we wish to stay longer or come home earlier.
I don't mind booking early, just pay the deposit and then sit back in the knowledge that you have what you want, when you want. We can then book up a nice CL or 2 for the nights travelling down to Portsmouth or Plymouth. It gives me something to look forward to and I have then got months in which to plan our route and what to do.
Having said all that we are very good at doing the last minute thing as well
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Sorry to hear you've cancelled again
like you if it wasn't for the possibility of getting locked down I think we would have gone.Our ferry crossings do look a bit complicated but I'm not worried by it I'm sure we will be ok providing we can get away in the Spring.
In some ways I wish we had gone in July when everything was ok. The reason we didn't is that we don't like it to hot or to busy, I guess we could have gone to north Germany or Denmark but having lived there for 20 years I crave other places.
We haven't given up hope for this year just yet. The way things are here locally we might just be better off over there. We have gone from being one of the lowest areas to now being the hotspot.
Of course it may be that we are all going to have just get on with life Covid or not.
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That’s the dilemma when considering cancellation or booking amendment. I would like to let things run until the 11th hour, (for me late October) and make a decision on the situation prevailing at that time. However, you know that by that time most of your options will not be available given limited capacity on BF routes.
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think i would probably have made the trip late july/early august, but the number of daily infections has now risen to 8000 with the threat of regional if not national lock downs, which puts a whole new slant on the situation
Sites were moderately full very few Brits ( hooray!)
Maybe Brits are being sensible and following FCO advise
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