The new HFP chat thread – Tuesday 11th August

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.

• Anna says:

  11 Aug11 August 13:52

  It says in partnership with Boots so maybe there will an arrangement for a cheaper test to be provided and more widely?
  Of course the obvious question is where on earth do you stand if one of you tests positive at that point?

• TGLoyalty says:

  11 Aug11 August 13:53

  That’ll well and truly kill off BA’s business

  £150 each way for tests for a £200 flight to europe. No chance.

  • Anna says:

    11 Aug11 August 14:01

    If there is a partnership with Boots I would expect much lower prices. My concern would be whether we would be insured for abandoning an expensive trip 72 hours before travel.
    Many countries require testing prior to entry now anyway so BA might be trying to get ahead of the game with this.

    • KBuffett says:

      11 Aug11 August 14:27

      Boots are charging £30 for 50 face coverings that are made in China. I know for a fact they pay around £4 for a box.
      They will be out for maximum profit on any test, especially if they are mandatory.

      • TGLoyalty says:

        11 Aug11 August 18:02

        How many stores does boots have in mainland Europe?

    • Anna says:

      11 Aug11 August 14:28

      If a vaccine becomes available though, I would pay to have that privately rather than contemplating not travelling any more!

      • KBuffett says:

        11 Aug11 August 14:47

        A vaccine WILL become available. There are too many billions of pounds on offer for one not to. Whether it’s effective or not is the real question.

      • Anna says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:14

        I assume some level of effectiveness would have to be proven before they could start using it?!

      • Lady London says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:24

        @KBuffet and whether any rushed vaccine is safe given Big Pharma and vatious governments’track records, is another question.

      • Brian says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:35

        The Oxford Vaccine has been worked on for a while and was already approved as far as safety concerns go in December (it was originally for MERS which is another coronavirus. Obviously the tests on whether it actually works effectively are ongoing).

        I wouldn’t use any American rubbish though, given that Trump is trying to rush one through before the election. I’d imagine that their safety standards are lower too given the muck which passes for food in America (much higher incidences of food poisoning versus Europe).

      • Anna says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:38

        Just seen in the press President Putin has announced that the Russians have created a vaccine 😱😂

      • Lady London says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:42

        I actually struggled to find food I felt was safe and had decent food value in Florida. I nearly starved last time. If I have to go there again I’ll take my ‘Shanghai kit’ and some tinned stuff.

• S879 says:

  11 Aug11 August 14:00

  Like many people, we’ve also had our holidays cancelled. I’m a teacher so the only time I can do the 2 weeks quarantine at home is summer holidays. Thinking of a last minute place to go with our two kids (11 and 14 years). Looking for privacy, ideally a pool, food within the resort/hotel but looking for an international destination. Could anyone recommend? I read about Emirates covering COVID costs. Anyone been to Dubai/Abu Dhabi/Oman lately?

  • Anna says:

    11 Aug11 August 14:35

    Are you saying you are assuming you will need to quarantine so will use the last 2 weeks of the holidays for this, or asking which destinations currently don’t require quarantine on return to the UK? Personally if I was going abroad right now and could do the quarantine I would pick somewhere with reasonably low risk in Europe (in case there was another international freeze on travel and you needed to try and get home in a hurry. Also I would want to know that I still had EHIC cover in case my insurer suddenly decided I wasn’t covered any more.

    • S879 says:

      11 Aug11 August 15:01

      Thanks. I wouldn’t want to quarantine on return but still want to keep two weeks in case ruling changes while I’m abroad. I don’t have that safety net during Xmas holidays and Easter holidays.

      • Anna says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:12

        I feel your pain just now, having a school age child! Agree Turkey might be a good bet, though no EHIC cover there, of course.

        • Erico1875 says:

          11 Aug11 August 20:47

          Italy have low numbers. Im just back from Rimini on the Adriatic Coast

  • Harry T says:

    11 Aug11 August 15:04

    Turkey is the obvious choice at the moment if you want a beach resort, as their covid situation is allegedly under control and they are exempt from the UK quarantine for returning travellers. Spain is on the naughty list, France will be within days, Greece is seeing a resurgence of the virus. I’ve heard very good things about Bodrum.

    I don’t think you actually enter Abu Dhabi at present. Dubai is open to international travellers, though the weather is terrifying at this time of year and you have to quarantine on return. I believe you may also need a covid test within 96 hours of travel.

    • graham says:

      11 Aug11 August 17:42

      If you go to turkey and are looking for an all inclusive deal for your family I can highly recommend liberty hotel at Lara beach all inclusive in Antalya probably one of the few turkish hotels you would consider as an international 5 star hotel

  • BSI1978 says:

    11 Aug11 August 15:23

    If considering Turkey, I’d swerve Bodrum and give Kalkan a shout. c.90 minute transfer from Dalaman but some good, & reasonable places to stay. Relatively quiet, excellent food and people very welcome (well they where the 2x I have been).

    Only issue I guess would be temperature which remains punchy until well into November, although on a par with the ME destinations you have quoted.

    • AndyF says:

      11 Aug11 August 15:29

      I can highly recommend Kalkan after visiting many times. My fiance, family owns a villa there. A lovely place and great resturants although quite expensive. No real hotels mostly villa rentals with a nice clientel. Expect to pay UK city prices £15 per meal drinks 4-5 pounds more for cocktails. So its definetly not Tukish pricing (you pay for the nicer areas).

      • S879 says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:44

        Thanks all for the views. Very helpful.

        • Sukes says:

          11 Aug11 August 21:48

          Regarding your Qs about Dubai/Abu Dhabi/ Oman – first none are on the FCO non-essential travel exemptIon list so you would not be covered by insurance as you would be travelling against UK gov advice. You would also have no access to public medical facilities that an EHIC used in an EU country could offer. Second Dubai is open to tourists by air but no other emirate (of which Abu Dhabi is one) is. Covid tests at your own expense are required prior to entry AND exit of Dubai. Covid test is also required on travel from Dubai into Abu Dhabi. Haven’t looked up what Oman is doing. There is no timeframe for allowing air tourists back into UAE ex-Dubai. And if uninsurability and onerous testing weren’t enough…..it would also be baking hot to visit these places now! Aug temps up to 40 and above don’t make Dubai very pleasant for sightseeing.

  • pauldb says:

    11 Aug11 August 17:47

    Italy/Croatia spring to mind as they seem to be well below UK cases. Nice beaches in Sardinia, or the Valamar hotels in Dubrovnik might meet your needs. Dubrovnik will be mercifully quiet; the complex has pools and a shared beach; we stayed in the Lacroma 4* hotel but on their V Level you get a quiet a la carte restaurant instead of the buffet and more premium spots at the pools and on the beach.

• Anthony says:

  11 Aug11 August 14:17

  Is it possible to pay for just one checked bag when two people are travelling on the booking?

  I need to call to book as I’m redeeming a voucher, if that’s makes any difference.

  Thanks

  • Reeferman says:

    11 Aug11 August 14:23

    Assuming you’re looking at Europe, you should be able to book an Economy Basic (Hand Baggage Only) fare and then add-on one checked bag. BUT, check that this is cost-effective by comparing with the Economy Plus option – it may not be (and almost certainly will not be if you add-on the bag at the airport, rather than on-line beforehand).

  • Anna says:

    11 Aug11 August 14:37

    It depends whether the voucher requires 2 of you to be on the same booking, but you can normally add on as many or as few bags as you want.

• BJ says:

  11 Aug11 August 14:26

  Check Tesco accounts for bonus avios offers; my partner received one that allowed us to buy avios at 0.65p. I am sure these offers are accouunt-specific so it is not a return to the good old days or cause for great excitement.

  • BJ says:

    11 Aug11 August 14:31

    That is, bonus clubcard (=avios) offers.

  • Harry T says:

    11 Aug11 August 15:06

    Please could you elaborate? I can’t find anything in the app.

    • BJ says:

      11 Aug11 August 15:22

      Bonus clubcard points for buying rice in our case. Worked out at 0.65p each for 720 avios, no cause for excitement as I said but given we would buy the rice anyway I suppose we can actually consider it 720 free avios. My partner clicked on the field to add a promo code and a whole bunch of small bonus coupons popped up to select. This was on main site, not in app although I doubt that makes any difference.

      • Vit says:

        11 Aug11 August 15:36

        I would stock up more rice then. Just bought 2 x 10kg sacks for two of us. 😉 Making the most out of Shop Small in our case.

        • BJ says:

          11 Aug11 August 16:12

          I can only dream of living in such an equitable household!

  • Rossy says:

    11 Aug11 August 17:14

    Where abouts do you see the offers? Is it via an email?

    • BJ says:

      11 Aug11 August 17:34

      Page before payment, where you get to add clubcard vouchers and other coupon codes. You have to click on the coupon field to type a code in, any preloaded coupons then appear for you to select.

• Ben says:

  11 Aug11 August 14:36

  Do payments to our West midland friends via MBNA horizon or Lloyd’s Avios attract cash advances or interest? Used to use

  • @mkcol says:

    11 Aug11 August 22:50

    Do you mean Creation?

• Harry T says:

  11 Aug11 August 15:00

  GTSP doesn’t have a great track record on BA related reporting…

• David says:

  11 Aug11 August 15:27

  In better news my first class flights to Denver on a 747 have been swapped for a 787-9. 14 to 8 seats is a result.

  • Anna says:

    11 Aug11 August 15:40

    Ditto us to NYC. It’ll feel very exclusive eating that sandwich & crisps!

This article is closed to new posts. Discussion continues in the HfP Forums.