LXFlyer wrote: » For one it has been made abundantly clear from the get go that unless travel is approved to a country by the government, virtually all travel insurance policies won’t cover you in the event of something going wrong.
TheDriver wrote: » Isn't there some amount of warnings suddenly coming on stream from all the experts re travel. Have they suddenly realised the number booked on flights is bigger than they expected?
bk wrote: » BTW It has been confirmed that travel from the US (and other countries) to EU is now banned:https://www.rte.ie/news/coronavirus/2020/0630/1150484-coronavirus-europe/ It isn't clear yet if this is Schengen only or includes Ireland too.
stephenjmcd wrote: » Its non binding for us, up to Ireland to implement.
bk wrote: » True, though reading the details from the EU, it doesn't seem to be legally binding for any EU country, rather it is a recommendation. Though it seems that almost all countries have agreed to it anyway. If anything, it seems that it is more of a minimum bar and member states can opt to be more restrictive then it if they want (e.g. Czech Traffic light system). I don't see any reason to think that Ireland would be any less restrictive then this. I can't see the government opening up unrestricted travel to the US, when the rest of Europe is banning them, that would be impossible to explain to the people of Ireland and would be political suicide. I do expect we will see reductions of restrictions on travel within Europe over the next few weeks. I suspect our biggest problem is the UK. The UK is far from having this under control, but we have so much travel from the UK and it would look bad to open up travel to the rest of Europe, but not the UK. That would cause political issues. It has been easier for them to just maintain an across the board quarantine. I do think that will change though, if things continue to go well.
stephenjmcd wrote: » I agree dont be opening up to the US. Personally I'd have no issue with travel within the EU. Anything outside should be subject to a do not travel
Inquitus wrote: » I'd ban the UK for now as well, until they sort their shíte out.
bk wrote: » the CMO came out said international travel was still unsafe and you should plan on staycations.
Jack1985 wrote: » I find it quite ironic we find ourselves in a similar situation to the whole mask’s episode with this public airing of views by NPHET. One lessening the percentage change of transmission (very low uptake as a result of public discussion) and the current situation which essentially has a whole industry up for play. Shocking way to conduct policy, don't see it changing anytime soon especially if elected Politicians continue to demonstrate that they are being led and not leading.
TheDriver wrote: » Herein lies my mistrust. Dr. Tony is always saying things are unsafe. Our former Minister Humphreys and Dr. Tony are tagging the staycation line far too quickly to the don't fly line. A lot of people have their money tied up in foreign holidays and can't staycation. Insurance won't cover them (for those that have it).
bk wrote: » Given that the entire EU has just banned travel to and from the US, along with a bunch of other countries, it clearly isn't just Dr. Tony who thinks this, but the governments and health services of almost every EU country.
Nijmegen wrote: » Sorry to post after myself, but this story is just incredible and highlights the sort of thing NPHET is screaming about. A family of 3 arrive back in Sligo from abroad, fill in their little form, then go and have dinner with the rest of their family and now up to 14 people are covid positive in the same cluster, one family member has a local business he has shut the doors of, risk to staff and customers... His brother is quoted in the article saying that the man and his family did everything right and were going to self isolate..... After the dinner....? Textbook case if ever there was one?https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/up-to-14-members-of-the-same-iraqi-family-at-centre-of-covid-cluster-in-sligo-1008362.html
VG31 wrote: » You left out the fact that they came from Iraq. I don't think anyone is disputing that mandatory isolation should remain for unsafe countries Covid-wise.
TheDriver wrote: » Aviation seems to be this week's scapegoat. A convenient showing of scary peak times in the hospital this week and lots of "calls" for flight cancellation but thats about it. Yet we have bus eireann not enforcing the mandatory mask rule, pubs open without food, funerals taking place with lots of people (including politicians who tell us to not go to funerals) etc etc. It's getting tiresome. Everyone has a vested interest. There was a chat on the radio this morning about US tourists in Killarney who arrived into Belfast. It sounded genuine. unlike a lot of EU countries, our rules are getting more and more of a joke with little compliance anymore. It's time they moved on from the "horrible air in a 737" chat and tackle the real issues i.e. wearing masks in shops/buses/closed areas
Nijmegen wrote: » I was more thinking about the absolutely stupid things that people are doing. We could see clusters like this from the UK soon.
Cookiemunster wrote: » We have a very long open land border with the UK. Unless that is shut (which is impossible) then the 14 day self isolation for incoming air passengers is pointless.
Nijmegen wrote: » Is it, though? What impact does us having a land border with the UK have on a passenger who flies back from his holidays in Spain with Covid and gives it to his family? Two things can be true at once and the spread of the virus is highly sensitive to the number of cases that exist, ie opportunities for spread. I hear a lot of people throwing their arms in the air saying "Oh well this is wrong, so why bother with that", and it doesn't logically follow.
Cookiemunster wrote: » Have you looked at the infection rates in the UK recently? They're the worst performing country in Europe. There are daily flights from Belfast to London, which as we saw during the lockdown are regularly full and other places in the UK. There is a much larger chance of infected people entering the country from the UK and not having to fill out any forms or self isolate, than there is entering via the airports from somewhere in Europe. BTW the rules are much stricter in Spain (and other EU countries) than here. Face masks are obligatory in public spaces (even walking down the street) when you can't social distance and are also required to access places like shops and cafés. Spanish beaches are enforcing social distancing. You will be dealing with the police if you ignore the rules over there. I think most countries would be more worried about us travelling there. We're currently on the banned list for Denmark along with Sweden and the UK.
Irish Steve wrote: » The worry regarding air travel is that even with face coverings, droplets will escape, and spread around the cabin of an aircraft, which is a very much more confined space than even the airport terminal, and with the airflow from the circulation system, possibly enhanced by the use of overhead vents, those droplets will spread, and they will not be neutralised by the filters until they are drawn into them, which could be some time..
