So that's it then, France is off! Quarantine from Sunday 4.00am

Casdon, yes you are right. Chewbacca, could you give the source of this (wrong I believe) information, please?

Chewbacca I think you mean the UK has?

Yes, we're aware kali2.

Are you aware of the fact that France currently has the highest number of confirmed COVID cases in the EU, as at today's date?

You are aware of course, that tourist and visitors from EU have to do so many tests and quarantine when coming to UK- as per UK requirements. Despite numbers being much higher and rising fast in UK?

AS for footballers- I totally agree with you. The 66000 at Wembley and even more on Sunday- is just ridiculous bordering on criminal. But they all have to be tested first, at least.

And once again M Macron following Frau Merkel is calling for a "non" for British tourists coming into France.
Quarantine likely.
That's nice after their visit to Cornwall.
And what about the German footballers coming to play next Tuesday?

We had a full refund from Ryanair. They offered us a voucher. We said 'no thanks' and we got a refund. It took a while but we got it eventually.

Merlotgran says it as it is. The virus is still with us. Ignore it at your own risk until either there is an effective treatment or a vaccine.

I thought I was going mad about the title of this thread, but it seems it was to be 4.00am tomorrow and then Wales, Scotland and NI put pressure on for it to be brought forward 24 hours. I did ask GN to change it, but no luck so far!

Have rebooked the villa for next year same time, easy enough to cancel the car hire, (seems literally twice as expensive for next year for some reason!) but flights are a real problem. Ryanair will only allow you to change, no chance of a refund, and you can only change for free up to 31st March, which is also when then flight schedule stops.

Their online chat isn't working, their phone isn't answered - hung on for and hour on a couple of occasions - so not sure what to do. Have to do something before 2nd Sept or will lose the money altogether. Would you advise booking a phantom flight before end of March, and attempting to move it again (probably at huge expense) when there are flights for Sept 2021 available?

I know for some of you this will seem like a first world problem, and I apologise for that, but this was a surprise holiday for DH, booked ages ago. Holiday insurance has a hefty excess premium to keep the cost down, and has since brought in CV restrictions, so don't think that is the answer.

All people need to do is change their holiday plans. My daughter has quickly rearranged her family holiday and is now going to Norway, where the rate of infection is very low.

France, Belgium, and Holland have much higher rates of infection than Britain. That’s why quarantine has been introduced, to try to prevent lots of people bringing it back with them and then infecting others.

Ellianne good post.

My sister and brother-in-law were taking two of their grandchildren with them to their house in Brittany but can't now as the children would miss 2 weeks of school when they came back and they are both starting new schools this year. So that's their break gone with their grandchildren.

mokryna the French quarantine for those from the UK will probably be voluntary again, which I don’t really understand. Having lived in France, friends are saying a lot of their tourists are from Belgium and the Netherlands, both with high rates of COVID, not just the UK.

I spoke with a French friend in Brittany this morning. She sounded pretty philosophical, c'est la vie, but did say that new measures are about to be announced in France in September. It's almost as though people had to be allowed to have their holidays or there would have been riots.
I said before that France actually had more cases and yet fewer tests than the UK, and that I felt for once our government was doing better. (The comment wasn't well received because some people just want doom and gloom.) C'est la vie.

SusieB50. Did your family make the 1.00 am sailing and thus beat this morning's 4.00 am deadline?

I was thinking about them!

Paris and Ile de France are the worst hit areas for Coronavirus in France and I’ve seen it reported that the reason the numbers are up all over France is because the Parisians have travelled to different areas of France for their holidays. This was reported about Brittany before most of the British started their holiday get aways, but the French holiday season had already started. The rate of Coronavirus in Britain is massively lower than the rate of infection in France, and so I think that the French would do well to look in their own backyard before blaming everyone else.

Grammaretto -I could have written your post word for word!
Such mixed feelings engendered by this whole awful situation!!

Carooline

I think it is childish of France to hit back the way they have, it’s not a game of tit for tat. Their infection rate is rising and we have to protect our people and country.
It is of course not a great surprise that they have done it, I would’ve thought however that they would be grateful economically for tourists.
Personally I feel these ‘air bridges’ have contributed greatly to the spread of the virus. Surely we can do without going abroad for one year!

When I arrived in this little corner of France from where I live in Paris there had been 1 case, now because of tourists many from other countries, there are so many more. It is not childish.

Oh Urmston I wasn't "getting at" you.
I was trying to be philosophical in the wee small hours and be a smug prig
I am missing my bus trips and find it sadly ironic that it's "safer" to drive these days.
I am sad that we have lost the joy of those first days of the lockdown when we celebrated the lack of planes flying over, the quiet roads, the abundant wildlife (remember the swans in Venice) only to have the majority wanting to resume their polluting lifestyles asap.
The new mountain of ddisposable masks etc is depressing too.

When we live here in Spain Grammaretto we don’t hire a car. We walk everywhere for weeks or use public transport (when it’s not Covid). I like to think our lifestyle choice offsets the carbon footprint that we use when in Manchester.
?
Maybe I’m delusional?

I think the government had no choice but to try to save the travel industry and the airlines. It has almost fallen over backwards to keep things a I expect in their heart of hearts some of the scientists wished a complete ban on holidays abroad.

Long before the pandemic I was uncomfortable when I heard about the numerous breaks and holidays some people planned, from stag dos to shopping weekends in NY!
One minute we are told that travel, air travel in particular, is damaging our small planet the next minute people is it the same people? are moaning that they can't have their usual swanning off around the globe.

My DS emigrated to NZ . We haven't seen him or the DGC for 3 years.
We make do with speaking on whatsapp almost every day.
Everything we do has consequences.

We can't have everything we want it's quite a lesson to learn but a useful one and makes for a happier outlook.

Such stress for everyone, such a difficult time. Candelle I think you made the right choice to tell your daughter about the impending quarantine requirement, as you say, they had to make the decision about what to do, which has now become academic as you say. Difficult for you though, knowing how much they needed that holiday.

biba no problem, glad you’ve got the information, though as we all know, it can change at any moment. Having said that, despite their terrible difficulties at the height of the pandemic, the Italian Coronavirus rates are looking quite low at the moment.

Susie I hope the drive is worth it and your family arrives home safe and sound, if tired, tomorrow.

It looks like we’ll be dog sitting then whilst daughter and family are in Norway, since they were taking the dog to France but obviously can’t take her to Norway. Well I suppose I can dream of a little holiday somewhere

Totally agree with you @Merlotgran!
If you need a break support hotels etc in this country. Lots of lovely places to visit.

DS and family are driving from Brittany as I write this, to their booked place on the 1am ferry from Calais . They were due to return Monday but it would be difficult to quarantine. Calais was the only ferry left with places available .It’s pouring with rain and DS the only driver . I’m really anxious and will be relieved when I get a message telling me they have arrived safely ?

We are in the same boat. Decided to go to Wales instead which is fine just hope we get some nice weather. The rates here are rising so not out of the woods yet.