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travelonlinetipsofficial · 3 years

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Simon Calder’s travel update predictions: What changes are likely to be made today?

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Simon Calder’s travel update predictions: What changes are likely to be made today?

Travellers, airlines and holiday companies are waiting anxiously for the latest round of changes to international travel restrictions to be announced.

The UK’s current rules are making holidaymakers jumpy about committing to a trip, and are slowly destroying the outbound and inbound travel industry – along with millions of jobs.

With furlough ending on 30 September, ministers now appear to want to limit some of the damage done to the travel industry.

Leaks from government sources suggest that big changes could be announced as early as this week, with the testing regime for arrivals to the UK potentially eased for vaccinated travellers, and the number of countries on the high-risk “red list” drastically reduced.

What are the current rules for travellers to the UK?

At present the four nations of the UK have some of the highest infection rates in Europe, yet simultaneously the strictest rules on arrivals.

Even vaccinated travellers from low-risk “green” countries must take multiple tests: one before departure and another (which must be a PCR) after arrival.

This regime is hard to justify: if someone is safe in Italy, with one-sixth of the UK’s Covid cases, why should they pay a small fortune for multiple tests in order to fly home?

The UK also has no fewer than 62 nations on the red list – and travellers from those countries must spend 11 nights of hotel quarantine on arrival in the UK, at their own expense.

No other European country has anything like those restrictions; Germany, which has low case rates, has a red list but no countries currently appear on it.

When will we hear of any changes?

Today is the day that, according to the now-traditional timetable, the three-weekly “traffic light review” is due – in which countries are shuffled between the green, amber and red lists.

But all the indications are that a much more wide-ranging announcement will be made by the transport secretary, Grant Shapps.

The travel industry, which is rarely given any advance warning of changes, was expecting to learn more on Wednesday (which clashed with the prime minister’s reshuffle) or Thursday.

There is still a chance the travel announcement will be given later tonight, but otherwise it will almost certainly be on Friday.

Will the ‘traffic lights’ disappear?

Briefings indicate that the current complicated system of five separate traffic light categories (including the green watchlist and “super green” rules for Ireland) is likely to be reduced to just three. At one end of the spectrum, Ireland is expected to retain its special “super green” status, with no restrictions on travel to the UK. At the other extreme, a red list of high-risk locations will continue.

In between, all the other countries will be treated the same. The new category, for which the name “gramber” has unfortunately been suggested, would cover almost everywhere in Europe, including our most popular destinations: Spain, France, Portugal, Italy and Greece.

In practice that will make no difference at all for vaccinated travellers – from their perspective, the rules for the current amber list, green list and green watchlists are identical.

So why all the fuss about changes?

Because the dismantling of traffic lights is expected to be accompanied by a significant easing of testing. While unjabbed arrivals are likely to continue to need to take multiple tests, vaccinated travellers can expect an easier ride.

Were the “test to fly” before returning to the UK abolished, as one source suggests, then many holidaymakers would feel more comfortable about travelling.

It would reassure travellers that they are not at risk of being denied boarding the flight home and having to spend a couple of weeks in isolation abroad – though of course anyone experiencing Covid symptoms abroad should take a test and, if positive, alert the local health authorities.

Ministers have also been talking up the prospects of replacing the so-called “day two” PCR test. This is an expensive hassle – typically adding £50-£70 to the cost of a trip.

The suggestion is that it could be replaced by a cheap and rapid lateral flow test, which would cut the cost but not the red tape: a test would still need to be booked and paid for in advance.

Some experts say diminishing the standard of post-arrival tests is a mistake; if such a test has medical value, it should be the most effective version.

What could the new “red list” look like?

The red list, requiring hotel quarantine on arrival in the UK, is way too long.

Expert analysts concur that Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, the Dominican Republic, the Maldives, South Africa, and possibly Turkey should be taken off the red list.

There could also be some additions, with concerns about dodgy data in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Venezuela – none of them high in the tourism popularity stakes for British travellers. A couple of lovely tropical island destinations – Grenada and Fiji – could also be added to the red list due to high infection rates.

But as the UK government has shown many times before, it can deliver wildly different conclusions to those indicated by the data.

Any other possible changes?

Some reports suggest that hotel quarantine – currently costing a solo traveller coming from a red list nation £2,285 – could be replaced by self-isolation at home. This would ease the burden on travellers who are visiting red list countries for essential reasons.

In addition, it would reduce the number of people who are – from a rational personal perspective – travelling more widely in order to stay in a third country, where they can ‘launder’ their Covid status.

The final piece of the jigsaw in aligning the UK with the rest of the world would be to recognise vaccinations administered in places other than Europe and the US.

At present, people who have had Covid jabs in nations from Canada to Dubai and Singapore are being treated as unvaccinated in the UK – typifying what is widely seen as a “keep out” attitude that is demolishing inbound tourism and making life unjustifiably complicated for travellers.

All these changes are focused on coming back to the UK – but how do foreign countries feel about us?

Even if dozens of countries are added to a safe or “gramber” list, created from the green and amber lists combined, that does not necessarily mean those countries are open to UK travellers.

Ever since the first green list was published in May, many countries on the UK’s “low-risk” list have made it clear they do not want British visitors due to our high infection rates.

Yet most European locations are remarkably open, at least to vaccinated travellers, considering the Covid case rates in the UK. Earlier this month I went to Germany, for which I only had to fill out a simple online form and show my vaccination status. Returning to the UK was much more onerous.

The Netherlands, which currently has the highest barriers to British visitors, is opening up from next Wednesday for UK travellers who can demonstrate they are fully jabbed.

But on the other side of the world, Australia and New Zealand show little interest in welcoming us, or anyone else, back.

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20000lemursunderthesea · 7 years

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Asia, Canada, Australia or Caribbean?

From there, we went all around the country. From Sigirya, an ancient fortress built on a monolith, to lackluster national park safaris to the sea. We did some dives with more of my friends, then ended back in Colombo to dive and have a goodbye party with my dive shop. They set up an adorable little table on the beach for us to all drink and not really communicate over. Those boys tried, they did. But for all our efforts, my Singhala and their English remained at about the same level as it started at a year earlier.

I'd been postponing buying a flight out of Sri Lanka just because I had no idea where I was headed next. I'd been talking to people back in Vancouver, in the Maldives, and two in the Caribbean. One of the Caribbeans sounded ideal, but I knew it was only going to be for a short time, and I didn't think they'd give me enough money to wait around for that time. One was offering lots of money, but it sounded wayyyy too hard. The Maldives was offering still a decent chunk of money, but a lot of pandering to rich ass people and sharing a small room. After being so isolated for so long, I was nervous about sharing a small space with someone I was also going to be working with and had no control in choosing. Vancouver was great, but not a ton of pay and that city is real expensive. Plus I wasn't quite ready to give up my tropical life yet. And umm..diving in Vancouver is real cold. Real cold. Plus I was running out of time to do a Working Holiday Visa in Australia which I’d been talking about forever. So...there was a lot of back and forth. Eventually I decided to go to the Maldives. I left a big suitcase of dive gear and stuff with a friend in Sri Lanka (close to the Maldives and a cheap flight away) and headed home to my parents for a couple weeks.

Well, as is the theme of my life...the best laid plans of mice and men were folly in the end. In the airport on the way back to Chicago, I got an email formally offering me the job in the Caribbean that was ideal all but for the timing and pay. They were offering more than I expected and it all around just seemed like the best option. Well...good thing I'd just left my stuff in Sri Lanka. Crapola. Luckily, one of my customers in Sri Lanka was American and constantly flying Business Class between the two countries. He agreed to pick up my stuff and take it to Kentucky if I'd pick it up from him there. So. There we were. New plan of action. I'd now have almost two months before the new gig and there was no way I would last that whole time at home with any sort of sanity in tact. So I would head to Vancouver to get some residency time in, see some peeps and decompress.

It ended up being amazing. Cold. But amazing. I re-solidified my love affair with the city. And I reaffirmed my plan to end up in BC. I was there for long enough to catch up with everyone who still lived there, and meet some new friends in the process. I got ahold of the dive centre I'd been talking with before and convinced them to have me do some temp work with them. They were fantastic and I really enjoyed working with them. I took me a whhoollleee lot to get re-used to cold water diving though. And Vancouver diving. Man, that is a workout. (So many hills. So much weight. So many layers.) But, I built a solid relationship with them and will be able to join up with them again when I return to live there. I also, unrelated to that, and before I started working, met a guy who was a DiveMaster intern with them and struck up a casual love affair with him. And, one of my good friends was leaving town to spend some time with her new niece and nephew in Ottawa, so she gave me her room to stay in. So, I loosely had an apartment, a job, good friends, and a boyfriend for the month and a half I had returned to my beloved city. Honestly, I was pretty damn proud of myself. It was everything I needed after such a hard few years. It was such a strange and wonderful feeling to be happy again.

But, as they do, all good things had to end and I was heading back to Michigan before I knew it. I stayed for a few days, reconnected with some people, and then went off on an epic adventure with one of my favourite people alive. Somehow, I convinced one of my best friends to drive with me down to Kentucky and back to pick up my suitcase. He even drove his car. Friendship man, ya can't beat it. I was subjected to his horrible taste in music, he was subjected to my horrible taste in road trip entertainment (Star Wars Mad Libs for the win!) and we both laughed until we nearly peed ourselves pretty much the entire time. Except when we were both recovering from whatever the mystery food of Cracker Barrel did to us. Bad life choices, man. But we did find some rather quality resting places. Like Deez Butts BBQ and the sketchiest flea market I've ever seen. Where he obviously needed to buy a machete. And Dinosaur World. Where I obviously had to ride all the plastic dinosaurs I could get away with without getting kicked out. And try to mount a giant mammoth replica...and subsequently fall off a giant mammoth replica.

He met a few of my friends from when I used to live there. We stayed with one of them. Though, she was in prime sassy drunk form the whole time and he was thoroughly entertained. We went into Mammoth Cave, where I used to work. It was great to see it all again and relive a very strange time in my life. We had some adventures even trying to get my bag, which of course was the main mission. And we did much, much driving.

To pick up said bag, Google Maps took up through alllllll of the most desolate and windy of roads. Steve was very convinced I had brought him there to die where no one would hear him scream. The bullet holes in the street signs were probably what tipped him off. He started regretting not telling his parents or anyone but his roommate where he was that weekend. Especially when we lost any kind of cell service.

Not helping matters in the slightest, once we finally got near where we were theoretically supposed to be, the road that we were supposed to turn down did not exist. Somewhere near there, though, there was a two track path. So I thought...I guess that's it? And had him turn in. It. Was. Not. It. At the end of this track stood a very clearly meth den trailer. It was tucked away, out of site from the road, and 4 or 5 pieces of various cars/trucks were scattered around it. Paint was chipping along the plastic siding. And there was once a wooden porch there. Probably. At least I assume that's what that decrepit pile of wood next to the door was the remains of. Knowing what I do know about said customer...there was NO chance this was his house. In the very small, very dark window, someone was moving the heavy curtains to watch at us invading their property. Steve then, in his infinitely smart-assery asks “Do you want me to knock and ask if they have the bag we're looking for?”

And then I basically shouted at him to get the hell out of there before the second amendment destroyed both of us. We eventually found the right house. In a very fancy, very new, subdivision further down the road. When we tried to explain our path, we only received looks of confusion and disbelief that we should go that way. And also very clear directions to not take that route again. Thanks, Google Maps. Thanks Kentucky.

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the2travel · 7 years

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* World Travel Tips : 13 Places To Visit Before They're Gone Forever

Travel Tips -

For Architectural Digest , by Hannah Huber.

With the growing concerns over everything from climate change to urban development looming over some of the most beloved locations on earth, it is a good idea for any travel lover to explore these stunning destinations before they go the way of the dodo bird. While some iconic destinations, like Jardin Majorelle in Marrakesh, have been given the TLC they need to fight Father Time, many are still falling into utter disrepair. Here, AD rounds up the 13 stops to push to the top of your travel list before they're gone.

The Dead Sea

Located at the lowest point on earth (1380 feet below sea level), the Dead Sea is a popular destination for its stunning desert views and legendary buoyant composition. However, it's shrinking at an alarming rate as a result of climate change and the slowing of its main water source, the Jordan River.

The Great Barrier Reef

Playing host to thousands of species off the coast of Australia is the largest coral reef in existence. Owing to threats such as climate change, overfishing, and ship traffic, the Great Barrier Reef is slowly deteriorating.

The City of Petra (The Rose City)

This massive archeological site is famous for being built by carving entire buildings out of a rock face. Sometimes called the “Rose City” for the natural color of the stone, Petra is receding because of a mixture of erosion and saltwater damage.

The Great Wall of China

This east-to-west winding wall was built to protect China from enemy invasions, but today it stands as the nation's quintessential tourist destination. Though many efforts have been made to restore portions of the ancient wall, it is still being damaged by erosion and locals selling its bricks.

More: The World’s Best Oceanfront Hotels

The Grand Canyon

Named as one of the 11 most endangered historical sites in the U.S. by the National Trust of Historic Preservation in 2015, this American natural wonder is threatened by the effects of mining and tourism traffic.

The Maldives

From its white-sand beaches to its miraculous glowing waters in the evening, the Maldives are the tropical paradise your travel plans have been missing. As a result of rising sea levels, the islands, which sit a mere 8 feet above sea level, are slowly sinking into the Indian Ocean.

Nauru

The Island of Nauru is the second-smallest country in the world, next to Vatican City. Nauru has been a victim of both climate change and irresponsible economic growth, literally being gutted by phosphorus mining.

Patagonian Ice Fields, Chile

Spanning the border between Chile and Argentina, the Patagonian Ice Fields are the second-largest in the world. According to Cornell University researchers, the once massive ice fields of the Andes are diminishing 1.5 times faster than recorded in previous studies.

More: 10 Incredible Ski Resorts

Glacier National Park, Montana

Glacier National Park originally housed around 150 glaciers, but because of the effects of climate change that number has dwindled to a mere 25.

Kasbah Telouet, Morocco

Once home to the powerful El Glaoui family, this popular Moroccan tourist destination sits collapsing from erosion in the Atlas Mountains. A project was announced in 2010 to restore and preserve what is left of this original palace.

The Great Pyramids of Giza

These mysterious pyramids in Egypt are a must-see for any world traveler. The magnificent structures are quickly becoming victims of erosion.

Venice, Italy

Offering everything from amazing cuisine to intimate gondola rides through the city’s epic canals, Venice has all the makings of the perfect vacation. With sea levels rising rapidly, Venice floods an average of 100 times a year and is at risk of sinking completely in the next century.

Big Sur, California

California is filled with stunning scenery, but few sites stack up to those of Big Sur. Known for its epic highway drives, Big Sur is vulnerable to droughts, landslides, and forest fires destroying its beautiful landscape.