Welcome to the March edition of the newsletter. As we enter another month of lockdown, there is quite a bit of positive news coming out now (even from the BBC)! The vaccination programme appears to be going well with a few 'bumps in the road' and there are good prospects for international travel resuming later in the year. Read our summary below along with details of the proposed 'vaccination passport'.
A bit of good news is that the NEC will be hosting the Motorhome Show in October. We have already booked our spot and look forward to seeing you all there (probably behind your masks).
More good news is that we are busy working on the 2022 Tour Schedule and will have details in the April newsletter.
As always, we continue to thank our NHS and other key workers who are keeping us all going. We all know someone who is on the frontline.
Keen-eyed readers will notice that I am not mentioning the inaugural Crossings Quiz.
Take care and we will see you soon: Bob & Wendy, Dave & Sue, Colin & Sue, Gary & Eleanor, Ian & Linda.
Road map for International Travel
Bojo has informed us of two key dates on the road map. The first is that we know for sure that international holidays are effectively illegal until 17th May. Therefore that is the first date that they will consider relaxing the rules and the first date that we could consider touring. As regular readers know, we will only travel if it is safe and legal to do so.
The second key date is the 12th April when there is a planned announcement about whether that date will stand, or whether it will be put back further. Therefore, we await that potential announcement with some anticipation as it may be the green light for our tours.
Other bits of good news is that we are in constant contact with our 'suppliers', that is the ferry companies and the campsites. As you might expect they are all very keen to get going themselves and are very keen to get the British tourists back. We will be very welcome.
You may have heard from President Macron that despite all of the politicking, the French government are also very keen to have British tourists back too. This is despite Brexit and AstraZeneca!
Covid passports
Another positive development that you may be aware of is the potential use of Covid passports. As and when we are allowed to travel, we expect that travellers will have to have had both injections.
The tricky part is that you will have to prove it in some way. Nothing has been decided yet but there are moves to introduce some kind of vaccination passport. This might be something in your physical passport (a bit like a visa) or it might be done through the NHS app. Some private companies, including a consortium of airlines, are also working on apps that will provide proof of vaccination.
Several countries have already indicated that they are very willing to take passengers from countries using the passports. The number of countries accepting these is likely to rise with every passing week.
This is something else we are keeping a keen eye on and will keep you updated via the newsletter as and when details become available.
Travel Insurance during Covid
The insurance market is constantly changing to reflect changes in society. When Covid first hit many of us discovered two things about our insurance policies. The first was that it didn't cover Covid. The second was that if the FCDO advises again 'all but essential travel' then your travel insurance becomes invalid if you choose to travel.
There are now policies available that cover you for both. In the first instance, there seem to be a few providers who will cover you if you catch Covid while you are away. This stands to reason as it will be increasingly unlikely that you will catch it. We suspect that many insurers will just start to include this as standard once the risks become negligable.
Getting cover for travel when the FDCO is advising against travel is more difficult and not necessarily something we would recommend. The FCDO does not give the advice lightly and we would question how sensible it is to travel if you are putting yourself and others at risk.
As with all insurance, the devil is in the detail and we would advise really taking the time to check the small print of your policy to make sure it meets your requirements.
Keep in touch
Please feel free to contact us at any time. When we are away, calls will bounce to our mobiles at no expense to yourself.
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