France Lockdown

[witzend]

[QUOTE="Robmac, post: 1178180, member: 21925"

At the end of the day, I agree with @witzend and all international travel should be stopped. It would be a logistical nightmare handling and distributing essential imports from the ports but these are times of emergency.
[/QUOTE]
Perhaps I should have said

All non essential travel

 

[Pedalman]

Personally, I think summer was always out if you were sensible, maybe autumn, just maybe
But the way things are going, it is a big maybe

I think we should just totally forget about going into mainland Europe this year, and possibly into next year if the winter escalates the virus. The lack of jabs and vaccines in Europe is going to cause a war of words and accusations between governments .......So, to quote Basil......"Don't mention the war, I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it" .

 

[John H]

I think we should just totally forget about going into mainland Europe this year, and possibly into next year if the winter escalates the virus. The lack of jabs and vaccines in Europe is going to cause a war of words and accusations between governments .......So, to quote Basil......"Don't mention the war, I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it" .

Maybe but I am currently in Spain (ferry back to the UK on Saturday) and have been all winter and can say that people here take the rules very seriously (well, outside Madrid they do!) and the vaccination programme is proceeding well. Admitedly, they are behind the UK and it is the over 70 age group that is being vaccinated now but they are aiming at 70% of adults by July and may well make it. Rates of infection are low now - comparable with the UK. I cannot speak for other European countries but we have booked our regular campsite for November and am fairly confident we will make it - assuming that Boris lets us out, that is!

 

[QFour]

I think we should just totally forget about going into mainland Europe this year, and possibly into next year if the winter escalates the virus. The lack of jabs and vaccines in Europe is going to cause a war of words and accusations between governments .......So, to quote Basil......"Don't mention the war, I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it" .

Better not go on MF and say that they will linch you. They are already chomping at the bit ready to book ferries ASAP

 

[Snapster]

I read the other day, that in France, you need 3 steps to get the jab
1 go to DR for prescription
2 go to chemist for prescription
3 go back to DR for jab
Not sure if it is free for French citizens

No, that’s not right, you don’t need to visit your Dr.
When you are eligible ( age or medical history ) you can go to ( or phone) your local pharmacy ( if they are giving the jabs) to make an appointment, or, as I did, go online and book an appointment at a local vaccination centre.

 

[Colinc]

Just driven van from Uk via France to Italy. The hardest bit is leaving the UK. BTW I have an essential reason for that. So just transit is possible. Camping in good spots not. And everything shut. We just stopped on motorway services.

 

[Pedalman]

Maybe but I am currently in Spain (ferry back to the UK on Saturday) and have been all winter and can say that people here take the rules very seriously (well, outside Madrid they do!) and the vaccination programme is proceeding well. Admitedly, they are behind the UK and it is the over 70 age group that is being vaccinated now but they are aiming at 70% of adults by July and may well make it. Rates of infection are low now - comparable with the UK. I cannot speak for other European countries but we have booked our regular campsite for November and am fairly confident we will make it - assuming that Boris lets us out, that is!

I assume you won't have had your vaccination yet .

 

[John H]

I assume you won't have had your vaccination yet .

No - when our surgery contacted us we told them that we wouldn't be back and out of isolation until early April and they told us to contact them when we got back to arrange the vaccination. We could have had it in Spain but decided not to because we would have left before the second dose. We assumed a 12 week gap but later found out that Spain is only leaving 3 weeks between doses, so we could have had it after all!

 

[Snapster]

Better not go on MF and say that they will linch you. They are already chomping at the bit ready to book ferries ASAP

Thank goodness I left them and found a nice friendly forum.........

 

[HurricaneSmith]

Thank goodness I left them and found a nice friendly forum.........

You and me both, and I won't be returning either.

 

[witzend]

I think we should just totally forget about going into mainland Europe this year, and possibly into next year if the winter escalates the virus. The lack of jabs and vaccines in Europe is going to cause a war of words and accusations between governments

Started I think 40 Brits allowed out of Manchester airport where sent back from Spain and told just because UK says OK doesn't mean Spain will accept you

Brits outraged after being turned away on arrival at Spanish airport

DOZENS of Brits were refused entry at a Spanish airport yesterday and sent back to the UK amid new Brexit rules. Border guards at Alicante-Elche airport erected a sign in the terminal saying “…

www.thesun.co.uk

 

[Snapster]

I really can’t see why people would be travelling internationally at the moment. Whatever their reason, surely they know there is a pandemic and mainland Europe is still lagging behind with vaccines and have far too many new cases to think about accepting travellers.
Common sense should tell you to stay at home ( or, local, as it is now.
I’m afraid I have no sympathy for any of them.

 

[mariesnowgoose]

Started I think 40 Brits allowed out of Manchester airport where sent back from Spain and told just because UK says OK doesn't mean Spain will accept you

Brits outraged after being turned away on arrival at Spanish airport

DOZENS of Brits were refused entry at a Spanish airport yesterday and sent back to the UK amid new Brexit rules. Border guards at Alicante-Elche airport erected a sign in the terminal saying “…

www.thesun.co.uk

I really can’t see why people would be travelling internationally at the moment. Whatever their reason, surely they know there is a pandemic and mainland Europe is still lagging behind with vaccines and have far too many new cases to think about accepting travellers.
Common sense should tell you to stay at home ( or, local, as it is now.
I’m afraid I have no sympathy for any of them.

That article is to do with the new TIE residency status required for Spain and nothing to do with covid restrictions.

It appears one of the British passengers with Spanish residency was flying out to Spain to visit her sick father, which, if true, is a shame.
This seems to be a problem local to Spain and folk transferring over to the new residency system since the B word. Overzealous border guards, perhaps?

Also, I'd take nearly all meedja reports, whatever medium they appear in, with a large pinch of salt

 

[barryd]

Sounds like they just found a new variant in France (Brittany).

France investigating new coronavirus variant detected in Brittany

A new coronavirus variant has been found in the French region of Brittany, the French health ministry said in a statement late Monday, adding that an initial analysis did not show this new variant to…

www.france24.com

The worrying factor then is what happens when they find one that the current vaccines do not work on?

 

[Trotter]

Thank goodness I left them and found a nice friendly forum.........

Name that forum. And can I join?

 

[REC]

I really can’t see why people would be travelling internationally at the moment. Whatever their reason, surely they know there is a pandemic and mainland Europe is still lagging behind with vaccines and have far too many new cases to think about accepting travellers.
Common sense should tell you to stay at home ( or, local, as it is now.
I’m afraid I have no sympathy for any of them.

I think , if you read the article, they mostly had residency in Spain but not the new TIE cards which are really slow at being rolled out. Portugal have instigated a system where a number is allocated as soon as the residence is accepted and border guards take this as proof. All residence certificates were initially issued with "European Citizen" and now have to be exchanged to show residence but not EU. Many were turned back in Spain before as they hadn't got the new documents and there was confusion about what documents are acceptable. Reducing it to an individual airport guards decision does seem a bit haphazard! And for someone with very sick parent, and having residency seems harsh and unjustifiable....if the media report is accurate.

 

[jacquigem]

We have the old card Spanish residency card but have been unable to swap to the new plastic Tie card as no appointments available. Have been told our current cards are acceptable and past a recent police inspection. Haven't tried to travel outside Valencia though

 

[witzend]

French Visa from the Complete France Magazine

How to get a long-stay visa to stay in France for more than three months at a time

Frustrated that you can no longer stay at your French holiday home as long as you’d like following Brexit? Here’s our guide to French long-stay tourist visas

www.completefrance.com

 

[John H]

French Visa from the Complete France Magazine

How to get a long-stay visa to stay in France for more than three months at a time

Frustrated that you can no longer stay at your French holiday home as long as you’d like following Brexit? Here’s our guide to French long-stay tourist visas

www.completefrance.com

That might work for people with property in France but I cannot see that it will be any good for those of us who tour in our motorhomes. Apart from the need to have an address in France, the killer for me is the need to show private medical insurance for your stay and if that is longer than 3 months, private medical insurance for people of our age and pre-existing conditions is prohibitively expensive. For me, the logical way round the 90 day limit is to throw in a couple of months in Morocco in the middle. We could then continue to use the successor to EHIC while in Spain and only take out private insurrance while in Morocco. I don't think we'll be doing that next winter, though, because I don't think Covid will be out of the equation by then.

 

[witzend]

France starts 3rd national Lockdown All schools and non-essential shops will shut for four weeks, and a curfew will be in place from 19:00 to 06:00.

Covid-19: France enters third national lockdown amid ICU surge

The measures come as Europe battles a third wave of the pandemic and delays in its vaccine rollout.

www.bbc.co.uk