When will we fly again?

faceman

Just to remind those with flights booked to Spain. Even though Spain is opening up, it’s only to Shengen EU countries. Ireland and the U.K. is not included as we aren’t Shengen. I’ve not seen a change to yet from the Spanish authorities. Hotel owners etc may not be aware of this distinction.

The 14 day quarantine thing on return to Ireland is being made law with no expiry date specified. As far as I am aware it hasn’t been signed yet.

Your travel insurance won’t cover you if you fly when the Irish government advisory is not to.

I’m so eager to get to Spain too. As soon as the Spanish government gives the ok I’m over there! The quarantine on return isn’t a biggie for me as my work is currently online anyway.

smelly sock

faceman wrote: »

Just to remind those with flights booked to Spain. Even though Spain is opening up, it’s only to Shengen EU countries. Ireland and the U.K. is not included as we aren’t Shengen. I’ve not seen a change to yet from the Spanish authorities. Hotel owners etc may not be aware of this distinction.

The 14 day quarantine thing on return to Ireland is being made law with no expiry date specified. As far as I am aware it hasn’t been signed yet.

Your travel insurance won’t cover you if you fly when the Irish government advisory is not to.

I’m so eager to get to Spain too. As soon as the Spanish government gives the ok I’m over there! The quarantine on return isn’t a biggie for me as my work is currently online anyway.

Grand so we will get a refund.

acequion

faceman wrote: »

Just to remind those with flights booked to Spain. Even though Spain is opening up, it’s only to Shengen EU countries. Ireland and the U.K. is not included as we aren’t Shengen. .

What is your source for this? From what I can gather their transport minister, Albalos, is very keen to get the tourists back and I see no mention of Schengen and non Schengen. Would that even be legal to discriminate against non Schengen?

Also, the Brits holiday in Spain in huge numbers and many have holiday homes there. Again why would the French and Italians be let in and not the British or the Irish? Doesn't make sense. But I could be missing something which is why I'm curious as to your source.

Mortelaro

Greece is announcing its air bridges tomorrow, it looks like UK citizens will have to quarantine for two weeks
Be interesting to see if Irish citizens will qualify as exempt from that quarantine on account of our good R number

Mortelaro

Mortelaro wrote: »

Greece is announcing its air bridges tomorrow, it looks like UK citizens will have to quarantine for two weeks
Be interesting to see if Irish citizens will qualify as exempt from that quarantine on account of our good R number

My understanding, from what Greece’s tourism minister said today, is that the quarantine for UK citizens is subject to reciprocity. As soon as the UK relaxes quarantine for arrivals from Greece, then Greece will do the same for the UK.

It seems that this is all about politics.....not R numbers

naughtysmurf

[Deleted User] wrote: »

It seems that this is all about politics.....not R numbers

Yep, politics & economics, that's always the way it was going to go in the end

Bob24

Deleted User wrote: »

My understanding, from what Greece’s tourism minister said today, is that the quarantine for UK citizens is subject to reciprocity. As soon as the UK relaxes quarantine for arrivals from Greece, then Greece will do the same for the UK.

It seems that this is all about politics.....not R numbers

Yep some governments are completely silly about this, France is the same: quarantine is required for people coming from outside the EU or from an EU country imposing a quarantine to people coming from France.

No way Macron can give a medical justification to this: which countries require it is purely based on ideology and not on medical evidence.

faceman

acequion wrote: »

What is your source for this? From what I can gather their transport minister, Albalos, is very keen to get the tourists back and I see no mention of Schengen and non Schengen. Would that even be legal to discriminate against non Schengen?

Also, the Brits holiday in Spain in huge numbers and many have holiday homes there. Again why would the French and Italians be let in and not the British or the Irish? Doesn't make sense. But I could be missing something which is why I'm curious as to your source.

Here you go. I have not seen a further update to this other than the health minister referencing being concerned about opening to countries like the UK where prevalence is high.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-spain-to-reopen-borders-in-july-but-british-holidaymakers-may-have-to-wait-11987693

GocRh

faceman wrote: »

Here you go. I have not seen a further update to this other than the health minister referencing being concerned about opening to countries like the UK where prevalence is high.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-spain-to-reopen-borders-in-july-but-british-holidaymakers-may-have-to-wait-11987693

Well solution is to visit Portugal (no quarantine) and then Spain!

maestroamado

faceman wrote: »

Just to remind those with flights booked to Spain. Even though Spain is opening up, it’s only to Shengen EU countries. Ireland and the U.K. is not included as we aren’t Shengen. I’ve not seen a change to yet from the Spanish authorities. Hotel owners etc may not be aware of this distinction.

The 14 day quarantine thing on return to Ireland is being made law with no expiry date specified. As far as I am aware it hasn’t been signed yet.

Your travel insurance won’t cover you if you fly when the Irish government advisory is not to.

I’m so eager to get to Spain too. As soon as the Spanish government gives the ok I’m over there! The quarantine on return isn’t a biggie for me as my work is currently online anyway.

There are a few posts about about Shengen on page 44 of this thread.
I do not expect it be a problem, the only reason we not in is there is no land border so no need, we are part of EU.

cgcsb

faceman wrote: »

Just to remind those with flights booked to Spain. Even though Spain is opening up, it’s only to Shengen EU countries. Ireland and the U.K. is not included as we aren’t Shengen. I’ve not seen a change to yet from the Spanish authorities. Hotel owners etc may not be aware of this distinction.

The 14 day quarantine thing on return to Ireland is being made law with no expiry date specified. As far as I am aware it hasn’t been signed yet.

Your travel insurance won’t cover you if you fly when the Irish government advisory is not to.

I’m so eager to get to Spain too. As soon as the Spanish government gives the ok I’m over there! The quarantine on return isn’t a biggie for me as my work is currently online anyway.

Just letting all of schengen in doesn't make any sense. Visiters from Italy pose a much higher risk than visitors from Ireland.

maestroamado

manniot2 wrote: »

Not sure if anyone has a view on this question - why are Ryanair giving free change of flight (including change of destination and no charge for increase in flight price) if I go in August but not September? Are they just trying to get some business going or do they know it wont be possible to go to Spain in August for most people (due to a likely quarantine over there), but they are happy to fill the planes as best they can and not cancel them therefore no refunds?

I wonder is it possible to bring a flight forward by a few weeks?

faceman

cgcsb wrote: »

Just letting all of schengen in doesn't make any sense. Visiters from Italy pose a much higher risk than visitors from Ireland.

I believe its a way of single out the chaos in the UK without just saying no brits.

faceman

Slight set back this morning for wannabe Spain visits like myself. The Valencia region which includes the Alicante coast was due to move to stage 2 next Monday but the government has now delayed it to June 1st.

Bob24

cgcsb wrote: »

Just letting all of schengen in doesn't make any sense. Visiters from Italy pose a much higher risk than visitors from Ireland.

Yep the idea that the Schengen area is an appropriate boundary for quarantine requirements makes no sense whatsoever - there are many different epidemic situations and policy responses within that area.

Having said that, while it was certainly true 2 months ago, at this stage I don't think Ireland is much less of a risk than Italy.

IMO it is more for the likes of Taiwan or Japan that the policy makes no medical sense: these places are much, much, lower risk than any Schengen country and yet coming from there requires quarantine while coming from some very badly hit European countries doesn't. Pure politics and ideology.

cgcsb

faceman wrote: »

I believe its a way of single out the chaos in the UK without just saying no brits.

Lot's of non schengen countries and indeed non EU countries with better numbers than Spain. Croatia or New Zealand for example.

Bob24

faceman wrote: »

I believe its a way of single out the chaos in the UK without just saying no brits.

If that was the case, they could have included all EU countries in the exemption (which would still have excluded the UK).

ShineOn7

GocRh wrote: »

Well solution is to visit Portugal (no quarantine) and then Spain!

Portugal is currently open to Irish?

faceman

Bob24 wrote: »

If that was the case, they could have included all EU countries in the exemption (which would still have excluded the UK).

The U.K. is still part of the EU. Spain relies heavily on U.K. tourism too. (Also you should see some for the comment from British tourists and property owners in private groups on Facebook :rolleyes: )

DvB

Out of interest, 'IF' Ryanair/Aer Lingus decide to start flying to the usual holiday destinations (thus avoiding having to refund passengers who decide not to travel for health & safety reasons) but there are still government recommendations in place not to travel to these destinations, have the passengers who have decided not to travel got a case with their travel insurance providers? Or would the pandemic simply null & void 99% of standard policies?

Seems unfair if people abiding the formal advice from their government are punished financially for followoing this advice because an airline found a loophole to avoid issuing refunds.

acequion

acequion wrote: »

All rational minded people want to get things moving again while the zealots enjoy curtailment of freedom.........

Wow what a righteous and patronising post!!!

Bob24

faceman wrote: »

The U.K. is still part of the EU. Spain relies heavily on U.K. tourism too. (Also you should see some for the comment from British tourists and property owners in private groups on Facebook :rolleyes: )

Not anymore since the 31st of January.

You probably mean that in spite of the UK's membership having ended some EU treaties still apply until the end of the year. But there is nothing preventing Spain, Italy, France or any other EU country from saying that they are enforcing quarantines except for passengers arriving from EU countries (which would exclude the UK).

ShineOn7

ShineOn7 wrote: »

Portugal is currently open to Irish?

I wouldn't imagine so, my Portugal flights for late June were cancelled a week ago.

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/may/18/europe-holidays-which-european-countries-are-easing-coronavirus-travel-restrictions-lockdown-measures

Portugal
Borders are likely to open to international tourists in 2020, and the tourist board have said that a “return for tourism is not far away”, although a date has not yet been announced. Some flights are operating between London and Lisbon. The lifting of measures varies depending on region. Public transport across the country is running at a reduced capacity, though there are rail and bus links to Lisbon city centre from most parts of the country, and taxis are still operating. Restaurants and bars in many regions are permitted to open on 18 May, at limited capacity. Many of the Algarve’s hotels are already open and its beaches are due to open in June. Non-essential travel is not permitted to Madeira and the Azores, where there are health screenings and mandatory 14-day self-isolation is still in place.

JimmyVik

DvB wrote: »

Out of interest, 'IF' Ryanair/Aer Lingus decide to start flying to the usual holiday destinations (thus avoiding having to refund passengers who decide not to travel for health & safety reasons) but there are still government recommendations in place not to travel to these destinations, have the passengers who have decided not to travel got a case with their travel insurance providers? Or would the pandemic simply null & void 99% of standard policies?

Seems unfair if people abiding the formal advice from their government are punished financially for followoing this advice because an airline found a loophole to avoid issuing refunds.

If you bought your insurance policy before COVID-19 then you will be covered, even if the policy has expired now.
Its the policy you had when you bought the tickets that dictates the cover and which you claim on.
But be careful. There is always a very big excess when claiming. Maybe someone else can say how much that excess is if you link your policy and the date you bought it?

DvB

JimmyVik wrote: »

If you bought your insurance policy before COVID-19 then you will be covered, even if the policy has expired now.
Its the policy you had when you bought the tickets that dictates the cover and which you claim on.
But be careful. There is always a very big excess when claiming. Maybe someone else can say how much that excess is if you link your policy and the date you bought it?

I haven't looked through the details of our policy yet (bought the insurance about a week after we booked the flights back in January) and had hoped I wouldn't need to being honest, but all the noise from Ryanair in the last week has me concerned we'll lose a substantial amount of money to Ryanair through them playing silly buggers.
I was going to wait until closer to the time to see how the situation develops as its not like I have any control over how this goes & didnt want to be stressing needlessly until the situation became clearer, but think its time to start reading the small print on that travel insurance policy.

faceman

faceman wrote: »

Slight set back this morning for wannabe Spain visits like myself. The Valencia region which includes the Alicante coast was due to move to stage 2 next Monday but the government has now delayed it to June 1st.

And to add to this and to remind everyone-just because an area in Spain or elsewhere is currently at stage whatever, if cases of Covid begin to rise, the govt reserve the right to reimpose lockdowns/constraints on travelling etc

All the talk of a “2nd wave” should be factored in when considering booking anything for July/August

dundalkfc10

Augeo wrote: »

I wouldn't imagine so, my Portugal flights for late June were cancelled a week ago.

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/may/18/europe-holidays-which-european-countries-are-easing-coronavirus-travel-restrictions-lockdown-measures

Portugal
Borders are likely to open to international tourists in 2020, and the tourist board have said that a “return for tourism is not far away”, although a date has not yet been announced. Some flights are operating between London and Lisbon. The lifting of measures varies depending on region. Public transport across the country is running at a reduced capacity, though there are rail and bus links to Lisbon city centre from most parts of the country, and taxis are still operating. Restaurants and bars in many regions are permitted to open on 18 May, at limited capacity. Many of the Algarve’s hotels are already open and its beaches are due to open in June. Non-essential travel is not permitted to Madeira and the Azores, where there are health screenings and mandatory 14-day self-isolation is still in place.

My uncle has an apartment in Lagos in Algarve and have been told to cancel all bookings until Sept at least

dundalkfc10

dundalkfc10 wrote: »

My uncle has an apartment in Lagos in Algarve and have been told to cancel all bookings until Sept at least

And the Algarve wasn't bad compared to Porto and Lisbon wrt number of cases etc etc.

d15ude

faceman wrote: »

The U.K. is still part of the EU.

Whaaat?

mackey9387

Due to go to Las Vegas in late October. Hopeful it will go ahead. If quarantine coming home is mandatory I will have to cancel as I cannot afford to be out of work for two weeks that close to Christmas. I am still working and buying $ each week should I stop or do peopel reckon things should be OK come then??

d15ude

d15ude wrote: »

Whaaat?

I think what is meant is that it is still bound by EU rules, until the end of the year

ShineOn7

I'm multi tasking here (8 tabs open) so only half reading this thread



So is Lisbon in Portugal a Yay or Nay? Is it open?

mackey9387

mackey9387 wrote: »

Due to go to Las Vegas in late October. Hopeful it will go ahead. If quarantine coming home is mandatory I will have to cancel as I cannot afford to be out of work for two weeks that close to Christmas. I am still working and buying $ each week should I stop or do peopel reckon things should be OK come then??

I say you should be ok for Vegas in October given that its over 4 months away. I have a wedding in Florida in December and i am planning on still heading over

Seamai

We were to go to Florida at the end of July for my partner's family reunion, which has now been cancelled. We have until the end of June to reschedule without any fee, up to now we were thinking about going for Christmas (some of the family live there) but being realistic I'd say it will be next February or March at the earliest.

GocRh

ShineOn7 wrote: »

I'm multi tasking here (8 tabs open) so only half reading this thread



So is Lisbon in Portugal a Yay or Nay? Is it open?

Ryanair is flying to Lisbon - right now - 5 times per week.
Official policy at the moment by Portuguese immigration is to allow entry of nationals, residents and those with family members in Portugal. No quarantine in mainland Portugal.
Roadmap at the moment is that Portugal will reopen the tourism industry for domestic travel from the 1st of June. Beaches open nationwide on the 5th. All covid restrictions will be lifted in mainland Portugal by early June, and they've already moved out from the state of emergency.
No official word yet on when EU tourists will be allowed in, but it seems that they're trying to save at least part of the summer season. If numbers remain under control, late July / August are looking like a good bet.

Source: I have a property in Portugal and Portuguese colleagues, and have been following developments closely and in fact spent part of the lockdown in Portugal (happened to be there when restrictions kicked in).

Caranica

With the US it's the immigration policy rather than the health status that will determine resumption of a semi normal Transatlantic flight schedule. So you're waiting for Trump... Good luck with that!

Caranica

Caranica wrote: »

With the US it's the immigration policy rather than the health status that will determine resumption of a semi normal Transatlantic flight schedule. So you're waiting for Trump... Good luck with that!

yes, only residents and citizens allowed in right now, and no sign of that changing (my wife is american.....yeee haaaaa.....Las Vegas here I come!)

mackey9387

Caranica wrote: »

With the US it's the immigration policy rather than the health status that will determine resumption of a semi normal Transatlantic flight schedule. So you're waiting for Trump... Good luck with that!

NOOOOOOOO!!!! :(:(

Beagslife

GocRh wrote: »

Well solution is to visit Portugal (no quarantine) and then Spain!

Land border with Spain is currently closed till at least the 15th June. That might be extended.

GocRh

Beagslife wrote: »

Land border with Spain is currently closed till at least the 15th June. That might be extended.

Correct. By the looks of things it seems that the Spanish will take a little longer to re-open.
Good news is that they've only extended the state of emergency by 2 weeks and not a full month as was originally intended. As far as I know (I could be wrong) they can't keep the border shut once the state of emergency has ended.

killbillvol2

One of the Portuguese ministers said yesterday that they may not have any foreign tourists in 2020.

The problem with reports from any country is that, just like here, various politicians are briefing/leaking and papers are reporting whatever they say.

The fact is that absolutely nobody knows what's actually going to happen until there's evidence of a second wave or otherwise.

cgcsb

I wonder are governments starting rumours and seeing what the public reaction is. It seems every other day there's conflicting information in public domain. I guess it's as good a way as any to form policy on something nobody has any experience of.

acequion

killbillvol2 wrote: »

One of the Portuguese ministers said yesterday that they may not have any foreign tourists in 2020.

The problem with reports from any country is that, just like here, various politicians are briefing/leaking and papers are reporting whatever they say.

The fact is that absolutely nobody knows what's actually going to happen until there's evidence of a second wave or otherwise.

True. And the Portuguese guy sounds a bit like Harris, inclined to voice his thoughts a bit too fast.:rolleyes:

But though nobody knows, there is no denying that there's a strong desire to salvage something of the tourist season. And given how important tourism is in European economies, that's in everybody's interest.

Personally I'd be delighted if I got to visit Spain before the end of August, but it's very much wait and see. And keep the fingers crossed.:)

JimmyVik

acequion wrote: »

True. And the Portuguese guy sounds a bit like Harris, inclined to voice his thoughts a bit too fast.:rolleyes:

But though nobody knows, there is no denying that there's a strong desire to salvage something of the tourist season. And given how important tourism is in European economies, that's in everybody's interest.

Personally I'd be delighted if I got to visit Spain before the end of August, but it's very much wait and see. And keep the fingers crossed.:)

Get the tourist season out of the way and we can all be locked down for the winter in wave 2, but we all had a holiday.
I dont know. I think we were lucky the lockdown happened when we had nice weather. It would be unbearable in winter.

cgcsb

JimmyVik wrote: »

Get the tourist season out of the way and we can all be locked down for the winter in wave 2, but we all had a holiday.
I dont know. I think we were lucky the lockdown happened when we had nice weather. It would be unbearable in winter.

Speak for yourself. Some of us like to winter in warmer climes.

Yes agreed if this started in a miserable Mid November I'd be dead by now.

manniot2

JimmyVik wrote: »

Get the tourist season out of the way and we can all be locked down for the winter in wave 2, but we all had a holiday.
I dont know. I think we were lucky the lockdown happened when we had nice weather. It would be unbearable in winter.

Agreed. I think for alot of people the full mental impact of the lockdown wont be felt until the winter kicks in and we realise we are facing into 6 months of misery, having not left our houses when the weather was fine and the days long. Thats why im dying for a summer holiday before September.

Morby

Unfortunately I'm having to get a flight to the UK next week, and I'm not looking forward to it, but needs must.

Has anyone flown from Dublin recently and what was the experience like?

I would love to get some sort of protective suit or overalls I could wear going through the airport and on the plane itself that I could strip off the other side upon landing, but I'm having a hard time sourcing similar.

I don't suppose anyone on here could help point me in the right direction, even something like some polythene painter decorators overalls, just even for peace of mind? Obviously not looking for a hazmat suit, but some sort of outer layer I could wear and dump the other end?

cgcsb

Morby wrote: »

Unfortunately I'm having to get a flight to the UK next week, and I'm not looking forward to it, but needs must.

Has anyone flown from Dublin recently and what was the experience like?

I would love to get some sort of protective suit or overalls I could wear going through the airport and on the plane itself that I could strip off the other side upon landing, but I'm having a hard time sourcing similar.

I don't suppose anyone on here could help point me in the right direction, even something like some polythene painter decorators overalls, just even for peace of mind? Obviously not looking for a hazmat suit, but some sort of outer layer I could wear and dump the other end?

I think you might be slightly over reacting. About 5,000 people, 0.1% of Ireland's population are confirmed to be suffering from the virus. A further 20,000 have recovered from it already. You must be exposed to an infected persons bodily fluids to contract the virus. Even if the person next to you has the virus, as long as you both keep your hands to yourself and nobody breaths on you, you'll be ok.

KindOfIrish

killbillvol2 wrote: »

One of the Portuguese ministers said yesterday that they may not have any foreign tourists in 2020.

The problem with reports from any country is that, just like here, various politicians are briefing/leaking and papers are reporting whatever they say.

The fact is that absolutely nobody knows what's actually going to happen until there's evidence of a second wave or otherwise.

I know absolutely what will happen. By mid-July all the EU countries will have their borders opened regardless of the virus situation. Why I'm sure about it? It's money and survival of EU project. The alternative total economical collapse and EU disintegration.

Morby

cgcsb wrote: »

I think you might be slightly over reacting. About 5,000 people, 0.1% of Ireland's population are confirmed to be suffering from the virus. A further 20,000 have recovered from it already. You must be exposed to an infected persons bodily fluids to contract the virus. Even if the person next to you has the virus, as long as you both keep your hands to yourself and nobody breaths on you, you'll be ok.

Yes, I realise that, hence me saying it's more for peace of mind than anything else.

I'll also need to get public transport to get to Dublin, and I'm not thrilled at the prospects of sitting on a bus for a few hours, then a few hours in an airport, then another hour on a plane.

I live with someone who is extremely vulnerable in a high risk category so I just want to try and limit my exposure and decrease my chances of picking up and transmitting anything to them as much as possible upon my return, and obviously I will be isolating for those 2 weeks after, it's the least I can do.

Appreciate your response and you replying though, and you have helped to somewhat alleviate any fears.

I still won't be looking forward to it however.