Cancelled Holidays

We are a nation that love to travel and holiday overseas. In 2019 more than 70 million of us took trips abroad. But in March 2020, the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office advised against ALL non-essential overseas travel. This devastating news was accompanied with frightening terms that many of us had never heard in our lifetimes. Countries were ‘closing borders’ and movement was ‘restricted’.

Holidaymakers were brought home early, and in some cases people were stranded after their original flights were cancelled – and huge demand plus general confusion made it impossible to rebook. Between the end of January and early

May, 30,000 residents had been brought back to the UK thanks to almost 150 special government charter flights from 27 locations.

When take-offs tentatively restarted in summer, many travellers were surrounded by chaos once more. Due to renewed coronavirus concerns in holiday hotspots like Spain and France, the government began introducing rules that those returning from certain countries, after specific times, would have to self-isolate. As the summer went on, more countries were added to the list.

Many people were forced to cut their getaways short to avoid having to quarantine – which would have meant an untenable loss of work and income. At one point 20 per cent of adults questioned had cancelled their travel plans due to quarantine fears (ons.gov.uk).

Booking a break in the UK became plan B for many, but availability could be hard to come by.

We spoke to some holidaymakers about their ill-fated travels in 2020.

A magical 12-night cruise of the Norwegian fjords was much looked forward to by Simon Sleight and his family.

Along with his father Brian, who used to teach Geography at Spalding Grammar School, his brother Stephen and sister-in-law Catherine, Simon was due to set sail from Southampton in late July.

Simon told us, ‘we picked this type of holiday hoping that it was going to be both scenic and suitable for my dad, who is slowing down a bit now he’s in his 80s.

‘He really loves Norway, having taken scout groups there a number of times when he was a scout leader.

‘We were at the point of renewing his passport when plans changed, and after lots of deliberation, we decided to postpone the cruise until next summer and go somewhere a little closer to home instead, that could be easily reached by car. We selected Shropshire, as my dad thought it might be a little off the beaten track compared to the national park areas, while still offering some lovely places to explore. A holiday cottage seemed like a sensible alternative, and we were lucky to find one with such character and facilities. It was located beside a canal towpath and within walking distance of both an aqueduct and a viaduct, and beyond that the pretty little town of Chirk.’

Simon and his family very much enjoyed their staycation in this idyllic location, and it has gone some way to make up for missing out on the stunning Norwegian fjords.

‘We postponed the cruise before it was actually cancelled,’ Simon explained. ‘This was disappointing, as we were all anticipating the break for many months. But the postponement and the cancellation seemed wise. The idea of being stranded onboard a quarantined ship certainly did not appeal, and even if the sailing had gone ahead, we would have been at least a little anxious throughout, in terms of cleaning regimes and so on. Not what you want on a break!’

Suddenly, getaways in 2020 looked vastly different from previous years – with face coverings becoming the norm and locations being a lot more local - but holidaymakers embraced the changes and enjoyed their breaks regardless.

‘The staycation is very much back this year,’ Simon told us. ‘During our stay in Shropshire most people were being sensible, keeping their distance while not being unfriendly and, of course, wearing masks indoors and on public transport. I also drove my father to Shropshire while wearing both a mask and sunglasses – quite a sight! But such precautions gave us peace of mind, and helped ensure we had a super holiday.’

Jet-setting duo Martin and Pauline Dickinson have missed out on not one, but three, getaways. Martin told us, ‘we’re disappointed to have had to cancel them, but we’re happy we have stayed safe.’

The couple should have travelled to Rome, back in March, to cheer on England’s rugby team as they played Italy, in the Six Nations tournament. Two weeks before they were due to leave, concerned by the number of COVID cases, the Long Sutton couple cancelled. They couldn’t even watch the game on TV, because the whole event was halted.

The next break to be binned was a two week tour of Southern Ireland, due to depart on April 17. Pauline said, ‘we were ever so upset, especially as we were going with friends.’ Determined to still enjoy Ireland, however, Pauline and one of her travelling companions, Peter Sheldrick, decided to have a virtual holiday. ‘We would send WhatsApp messages and pictures to each other, talking about the food we should have been eating, where we would have been staying, and what we would have been doing,’ she told us.

And it was third time unlucky in May, because their much looked forward to holiday in The

Martin and Pauline Algarve, Portugal, couldn’t go ahead either.

In common with so many of us, when left with a little more time on their hands, Martin and Pauline focused on their to-do lists.

‘We caught up with lots of jobs around the house and outside, and we have very much enjoyed sitting in the garden. A fair bit of wine was consumed as well!’ laughed Martin. ‘We enjoyed the lovely weather – we certainly made the most of a bad situation. Apart from the disappointment of not being away, we were happy to stay at home.’

Martin added, ‘we are trying to use common sense and protect ourselves now. We have absolutely no inclination to travel abroad until there is a vaccine to protect against COVID-19. For now, we will enjoy eating at the local pubs and restaurants that we think have done a really good job of setting up safe areas – inside and out.’