Tell us about your Holiday plans

[Wolfmiester]

I (well, the family and I) have just had 4 days sight seeing in Iceland, and I'm posting this to say if you are even slightly thinking about going then its a must!
If you are not thinking about going, then start thinking
Unbelievably beautiful and unspoiled.
Just amazing, go see for yourself.

[Jill]

I (well, the family and I) have just had 4 days sight seeing in Iceland, and I'm posting this to say if you are even slightly thinking about going then its a must!
If you are not thinking about going, then start thinking
Unbelievably beautiful and unspoiled.
Just amazing, go see for yourself.

Thank you for the recommendation Steve - over the years, we have often talked about visiting Iceland ... We might make it yet.

[Wolfmiester]

No one been anywhere since January?
Going to Sorrento in Italy on Sunday for a week. Never been and very much looking forward to seeing Pompey and/or Herculaneum.

[plummy]

Had a day out in Sorrento during my last cruise in April - it's a beautiful place (although the town was pretty mobbed with tourists). Driving down the Amalfi coast was stunning too. We got talking to a couple of Americans who said of all the places they'd visited, that was the first place they thought they'd love to up-sticks and move to.

[Wolfmiester]

Off to Vietnam, Cambodia and Singapore tomorrow.
We have reached the time of life to tick off a few "must do's", and Mrs Smith is ensuring holidays are not "wasted on golf"
Timing is good as I have a return of my 'problem shoulder'.
Hope to return on the 25th fully refreshed.

[Wolfmiester]

Any skiers out there? (Alpine).
A bit of a 'boast', but I'm highly chuffed with myself at 55 and a bit, so please forgive me.
Managed to ski down "The Swiss Wall" without a) breaking anything and b) without falling over even.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wK2U0Hg ... K2U0Hg2YHA
I'm very thankful it was not icy, and therefore relatively "easy".
Shan't be rushing back, but glad I got the badge.

[Paul Victory]

Just wondering if anyone is thinking of taking a holiday abroad this summer? I know there are some hurdles to be jumped, in particular government advisories, the availability of flights and the possibility of quarantine at either end.

But assuming those hurdles are cleared, how safe would you feel going through a crowded airport and spending a few hours cooped up in a plane with over a hundred others in close proximity? And would the fact that a lot of places might be closed (in particular bars) or might have reduced capacity and restrictive rules put you off even if you were OK with the health and safety aspects of getting there.

Jennifer and I have already cancelled two trips to our apartment in Alvor this year - one in March just as things were kicking off and another in late May. We are currently booked on flights going to Faro on July 12th and flying home on July 26th. To date the flights have not been cancelled, although our flight out has been rescheduled by a few hours. I'm very tempted to go, Jennifer is open-minded about it, but a bit more concerned then I am about the health and safety aspects.

I'd be interested to know how other people have been affected and what your plans are for the summer.

[Jill]

Paul, this year, we were planning to replace our thirty year old kitchen and utility room and as that would have been a major expense, haven’t as yet, arranged any holidays.

Any thoughts of a new kitchen this year have now evaporated and until the situation in this country greatly improves, we will not be staying away anywhere, especially abroad.

Various reasons for this:

Entering some countries would require us to go into quarantine and then into quarantine again on our return to England.

Whether we travelled by rail, ship or plane, we would also be put off by having to go through all the rigmarole of health and social distancing.

We cannot stay away anywhere in this country until hotels etc are up and running - supposedly July 4th at the earliest, although once again, there will be the palaver of health and social distancing to contend with.

If we are to believe the media, until infection rates are zero, those who live in some tourist locations will not be happy about being descended on by hordes of ( inconsiderate, litter dropping, highly contagious ) holiday makers. That's not us.

Although we do not appear to have any underlying health problems, being over seventy, we are classified as at risk or vulnerable, which makes me, more than Richard, feel apprehensive about mixing too soon with others.

It isn't just about going or not going away. We live in a village and like so many other places, there are plenty of village events that take place during the summer. I help out ( on the catering side ) with some of them but this year, due to lockdown, a huge and very enjoyable chunk of the village's social life has been missing. A very surreal sort of summer.

On the plus side:

We have been able to purchase parking/time slot tickets from The Royal Horticultural Society, English Heritage and the National Trust and have enjoyed afternoons out, walking around their properties. We hope that there will be more opportunities like this.

We are also managing to save some extra money to put towards the new kitchen.

We do appreciate that there must be safeguards and like so may others we have patiently complied with all the lockdown rules. We have also tried to keep a balanced view about the scaremongering, the false news, the half truths, the untruths, the opposing opinions and the contradictory advice.

No great words of advice to give you and Jennifer - psychologically, ( not sure if that's the right word ) do the benefits of going outweigh the benefits of staying put? At least you have about a month to make up your minds and hopefully, in that time, things might have moved along in a more positive direction.

[Paul Victory]

Thanks for your response Jill. I’m in two minds about whether or not we should go, assuming flights are operating and quarantine restrictions are lifted.

There are currently no quarantine requirements in Portugal for visitors from Ireland, but there is a 14 day quarantine for those arriving in Ireland. This is under review and seems likely to be relaxed by end July, although I guess that will be very much dependent on what happens with the spread of the virus between now and then.

On the one hand, I really miss Alvor and would love to spend some time over there. I would also like to support the local businesses over there that are suffering badly from loss of custom.

From a health and safety perspective, my main concern is that that we might pick something up either at the airport or on the plane, where social distancing would be problematic, to say the least. Much as I would hate picking up the virus myself, I would also hate being a source of infection for the people over there or for my friends and neighbours on my return.

There is currently a government advisory against non essential travel and I would be reluctant to go against this if it is still in place when we are due to travel. At the end of the day, this may well be the deciding factor in determining whether or not we go to Alvor next month.

[Wolfmiester]

hi Paul,
we (Linzi and I) are/were due in Portugal too next month, albeit Lisbon and not down South near you.
We had a lovely hotel and a special bday meal in one of Lisbon's best restaurants booked.
I say had, because we have cancelled.
There are way too many unknowns and for the time being are staying put.
That said, you have your own home over there and know the area extremely well. So it maybe just a question of the travel for you to consider. Still a very big question though surely?

[Paul Victory]

Hi Steve

Yes, it's really just a question of travel and I just don't know whether it would be irresponsible to do so.

At this stage, it's just wait and see for us.

[Paul Victory]

At this stage, our planned trip to Alvor in mid July is looking very doubtful. The 14 day quarantine for those arriving in Ireland from abroad is still in place and friends of ours who were due to be in Alvor at the same time as us have cancelled their flights.

On the plus side, my home gym is not subject to quarantine while the gym in Alvor is currently closed and probably won't be open next month if we do end up going over there!

Paul V

[Jill]

At this stage, our planned trip to Alvor in mid July is looking very doubtful. The 14 day quarantine for those arriving in Ireland from abroad is still in place and friends of ours who were due to be in Alvor at the same time as us have cancelled their flights.

On the plus side, my home gym is not subject to quarantine while the gym in Alvor is currently closed and probably won't be open next month if we do end up going over there!

Paul V

Thank you for the update Paul and sorry that there is still uncertainty about your plans, although it does sound as if you are going to choose what many of us would see as the sensible option.

Although England has lifted quarantine restrictions for people returning from some European countries, this still does not include Portugal as there have been some new outbreaks in Lisbon.

Do you normally go to Alvor in October or am I imagining that?

If you do decide to stay put, at least you know that your holiday home will still be there waiting for you, along with the many opportunities to come.

Also, with the different ways these days of contacting family and friends, technology should at least allow you to all raise a glass or two, to each other, in a ‘ holiday toast ‘.

[Paul Victory]

Thanks Jill. One of the issues that is likely to contribute to us deciding not to travel is an unauthorised party that took place a few miles from Alvor 3 weeks ago. A sports club was booked for 20 people to attend a birthday party and over 100 showed up. As 20 is the legal limit at present, the people running the club informed the police who arrived and broke up the party, which apparently then continued at a different venue. The last report I saw said that 111 people has tested positive as a result, although this may have increased since then. Apparently, prosecutions are pending.

Well remembered about our tendency to visit Alvor in October! We were due to travel over in March and rescheduled these flights for October 7th to October 21st. Hopefully, things will be safer by then. although who knows? We were also due to travel at end May and those flights have been rescheduled to next April. We will probably reschedule our July flights to 2021, although I would still like to go over sooner than October, even if only to check out the apartment and make sure everything is OK.

We had a video call on Friday (and a glass or two of wine) with friends that we were due meet in Alvor next month. They also have an apartment over there and we tend to schedule our trips to overlap to at least some extent. They have cancelled their July trip and have told us that they almost certainly won't be going over in October this year.

I've been looking at possible hotel bookings in Ireland and the prices are scary. I certainly won't be staying anywhere for two weeks, but may book a 4 or 5 day break somewhere nice.

[FlbrkMike]

My wife and I were scheduled to go to Italy for two weeks in late August to celebrate her 70th birthday. We have never been to Europe together, and my stepdaughter was going to rent a villa in Tuscany and fly us there first class. We would have been there with her and our two grandchildren. This, obviously, got cancelled back in March.

Instead, we have now arranged to rent a large house in Tahoe City (about 9 hours drive from here) for the first week in August. My brother has a second home there and my late sister's family will also be renting a place in the neighborhood. My two grown kids and their "significant others" will be sharing the house with us. I'm still a little hesitant to travel but we won't be flying. All six of us have been sheltering mostly at home, and the house is big enough so that each couple has a bedroom on a different level. We will probably stay away from restaurants and any popular tourist spots, but there are plenty of hiking opportunities where it won't be difficult to keep a good "social" distance.

[Wolfmiester]

Enjoy Mike.
Tahoe as in 'Lake Tahoe' ?
Surely one of the most beautiful spots in the world, although I'd struggle to call it a city if its the same place
Not quite a 1st class trip to Italy, but I'm sure it will be fab.

[FlbrkMike]

Thanks Wolfmeister.

Yes, Tahoe City is on the northwest shore of Lake Tahoe. And you're right, not much of a "city" but definitely a beautiful spot. Just a few minutes drive from the Squaw Valley and Alpine Meadows ski areas, and close to Truckee. A lot of people go there to ski in the winter but there's a lot of great hiking, biking, sailing, paddle boarding, etc. in the summer.

Not a 1st class trip to Italy, but a lot easier to get to from here. And though it's a nine hour drive up the eastern side of the Sierra Nevada, there's a lot of interesting scenery on the way.

http://www.photospydie.com/photo-trips/ ... ighway-395

[Paul Victory]

Jennifer and I have cancelled our planned trip to Alvor on Sunday because of continuing travel restrictions imposed by the Irish government. We're hoping we will be able to go ahead with the trip we have booked for October, but who knows?

In the meantime, we've booked 5 nights away in Ireland from July 19th to 24th - 3 in Donegal and 2 in Cavan. Hopefully, it will stop raining for long enough to allow us to get some fresh air while we're away.

[Jill]

Paul and Mike, I do hope that you will both have an enjoyable time.

When you get back, it will be interesting to read your comments on the Weight Loss Thread.

Mike, thank you for the stunning photographs.

Drive safely and look after yourselves.

[Paul Victory]

We finally managed to make it back over to Alvor after 5 cancelled trips since January 2020. No real hassle getting here apart from a longer than usual wait at passport control due to the checking of EU digital COVID passports.

Everywhere is open, but a lot less busier than usual and all bars and restaurants have to close at 10:30 (and by close, I mean throw everyone out) and there is a curfew from 11pm to 5am. Delighted to make it over and to be able to visit all our old haunts (well, most of them - a few have unfortunately gone out of business due to the pandemic.

We arrived last Thursday and are here until August 14th - 23 days in total and our longest continuous stay here since we bought the apartment. We have another 18 days booked at end October. The on-site gym is unfortunately closed for health and safety reasons, but both swimming pools are open. And I haven’t been doing any rowing recently in any event, so it’s not that big a loss.

Paul V

[Wolfmiester]

Sounds lovely! Enjoy the extended stay.

[Paul Victory]

Sounds lovely! Enjoy the extended stay.

Thanks Steve. So far, so good. The curfew has been lifted and restaurants and bars can now stay open until 2 am (if their licence permits).

I think I preferred the earlier closing as I tend to stay up too late when I’m here, particularly if there’s a karaoke bar open nearby. I have managed to mangle a few songs over the past couple of weeks! Still 5 nights to go before we fly home on Saturday afternoon.

[Paul Victory]

Heading over for another visit to Alvor on Sunday week. Hopefully there will be no disruptions as we had to cancel a planned trip in January.

Also have a three day trip to Liverpool booked at end March. This is during an international break so there will be no Premier League match in Liverpool that weekend. The trip will be Beatles themed with a visit to the Cavern and various other Beatles related activities.

[Wolfmiester]

Finally, after a number of attempts and failed visas and cancelled flights we are off to Australia for the first time for 4 years to see our two kids.
One in Sydney and one in Melbourne, with a week on a beech in Noosa, just above Brisbane, thrown in as well.
3 years of saved up kiddie hugs on the way for the next 3 weeks

[Paul Victory]

Finally, after a number of attempts and failed visas and cancelled flights we are off to Australia for the first time for 4 years to see our two kids.
One in Sydney and one in Melbourne, with a week on a beech in Noosa, just above Brisbane, thrown in as well.
3 years of saved up kiddie hugs on the way for the next 3 weeks

That's great Steve. Hope you have a fantastic time over there.