How safe is it to return to northern Italy?
Simon Calder answers your questions on navigating quarantine measures, getting refunds and the final days of BA’s Boeing 747
Q I have an MSC cruise booked for October. I expect it may get cancelled, but I am still hoping to use the flights (into Milan Bergamo, out of Malpensa). Would you visit the Lombardy region of northern Italy given the high number of Covid-19 cases still in that region? And if you would, where would you go?
Rachel Q
A Yes, I will gladly travel to northern Italy – indeed I am flying there on Monday for an adventure embracing Trieste (with a possible excursion into Slovenia), Venice, Bologna, Florence and Siena. Before I booked, I checked TravelHealthPro. This is the excellent online front door for the National Travel Health Network and Centre.
It simply says: “There is a moderate risk of exposure to Covid-19 in this country. Travellers at increased risk of severe Covid-19 should consider avoiding non-essential travel to this country.”
It is refreshing that you see the probable cruise cancellation as an opportunity rather than a disappointment; I hope in turn that your flights are not cancelled, as many are being right now. Fortunately, you will be in the Italian Lakes region at a good time of year.
I assume you will have a week to enjoy, and suggest you fill it like this – with rail travel rather than renting a car. Start by exploring Bergamo, and its hilltop old city: protected by Venetian walls and a Unesco World Heritage Site listing, and with Campanone (Civic Tower) at the summit, with superb views of the Alpine foothills. The bell chimes 100 times at 10pm, the traditional time the gates to the Città Alta are closed.
Then head east to Lake Garda, and perhaps beyond to the fine city of Verona. A fast train will whisk you to Milan in an hour or so. Devote at least 48 hours to the commercial capital of Italy, which is also richly cultured.
Don’t go straight to Malpensa airport. Instead, take the train to Stresa on Lake Maggiore, and hop your way around the Borromean Islands. With an evening flight, you can take the train to the town of Gallarate, from which a bus to Malpensa takes just 15 minutes.
Q You wrote about Greece opening up to British holidaymakers. But given the risk of potential quarantine, would you travel to Greece, Simon?
Also, does the additional red tape constitute a “substantial” change to a package holiday, thus allowing travellers to cancel their holiday for a refund?
Name supplied
A I would be delighted to travel to Greece; I was disappointed to cancel a planned trip to the island of Zakynthos (Zante) earlier this month, due to the ban on flights from the UK.
But two weeks after most European tourists were allowed back in to visit Greece, the country opened its doors to British holidaymakers on 15 July. As you read, passengers must tackle some bureaucracy. Every visitor must apply for a Passenger Locator Form (PLF) at least 24 hours before departure, with details of where the journey is starting, recent travel history and planned Greek location. You will be emailed a “QR code” at midnight at the start of the day you plan to travel to Greece.
Agreed, this is inconvenient compared with the carefree summer of 2019, but on its own I think it is far from a significant change, and would prove zero deterrent to me.
I know, though, that some prospective travellers are concerned about the statement from Visit Greece that arriving holidaymakers “may have to take a targeted random test”. I infer from the term “targeted random test” that there is some chance that passengers arriving from the UK may be selected for a coronavirus PCR test.
The tourism directorate continues: “Travellers tested for Covid-19 will have to self-isolate for 24 hours at the address of their destination until the test results are out.”
That would be extremely inconvenient for anyone planning to go from airport to beach to taverna. Even worse: “Those who test positive will be quarantined for 14 days in designated hotels in each region capital and on the islands.”
But in practice, I think tests will be very rare, and I do not believe any company would regard this small risk as a significant change.
Q I was desperate to travel on a Boeing 747, and the news that British Airways has retired theirs makes me fear I have missed my chance (just as I did with Concorde, incidentally). Is there anything you can suggest to allow me to achieve this ambition?
Tom H
A In the past four months since the coronavirus pandemic struck, the Jumbo jet has gone from an aviation icon gracefully seeing out its days to an obsolete behemoth from a distant age. Both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, who had been enthusiastic users of the Boeing 747, have grounded their fleets of the four-engined jet as the crisis deepened.
They were already planes out of time: while the Jumbo revolutionised long-haul travel and dramatically expanded horizons for the average traveller, it was looking increasingly questionable in an age when the environmental impact of aviation is studied more closely than ever.
Having said that, there are still going to be plenty 747s flying for years. According to the data specialist Cirium, 338 are in service around the world. However, of these, only one in 11 is a passenger jet; the remainder are hauling freight around the world.
Absolutely the best chance is going to be with Lufthansa via the German airline’s Frankfurt hub. Lufthansa was one of the few airlines to buy passenger versions of the newest version of the 747, with the suffix -8 (BA and Virgin flew the -400). It has 19 in the fleet, with an average age of under seven years, and evidently the carrier thinks it has plenty of life yet.
You could take off tomorrow from Frankfurt to Chicago aboard LH930, except for the unfortunate fact that you would not be allowed into the US due to the presidential decree that took effect three months ago. But I am confident that it will be in service for several more years, and a wide range of other destinations are currently served – including Los Angeles, Shanghai and Mexico City.
So start planning; the Lufthansa website make it clear which aircraft is scheduled to operate the trip. But be warned that last-minute substitutions can be made, and if you end up aboard an Airbus A350 (which, incidentally, I much prefer), that would not be grounds for a refund.
Q We began a package holiday in March with a flight from the UK to Turkey and onwards to northern Cyprus. All went well until we were on the flight from Antalya to Ecru when a message came through that Cyprus had stopped all tourist flights landing. The plane therefore did a U-turn back to Antalya. We spent two nights at a hotel near the airport, with an afternoon tour of Antalya, before we were flown back to Gatwick. The holiday company said we would not get a refund for the curtailed holiday and we would have to claim from our insurance company. Ten weeks on I have just heard they will not pay the claim as the costs are recoverable elsewhere, presumably from the travel company who have said they will not pay either.
We, therefore, spent £760 on a holiday plus £300 in taxi fares between Norwich and Gatwick airport. My view is that the insurance company is liable as the curtailment was due to unforeseen circumstances – the sudden decision of the Cyprus government to stop flights landing. Please can you also advise me if there is an arbitration service or ombudsman who can adjudicate whether we are due a refund and who pays?
Martin F
A Annoyingly, the message about the closure of Cyprus came through only after your departure; had it been before you left Gatwick, it would have been a straightforward matter of securing a full refund of your holiday, though not your taxi fares. You are certainly due a partial refund, though I am afraid it may amount to less than you feel you have the right to expect.
I have some sympathy with the insurance company, because you should certainly have not been flatly rejected by the travel firm. While many holiday companies have done what they can to divert claims to insurers, those insurers are pushing back where they believe the law is on their side.
The package travel regulations, which govern your holiday, specify partial reimbursement of a trip that cannot go ahead as planned. I suggest you remind your travel firm about this and wait to see what they offer. I predict they will deduct £300-£400 for the flights, and perhaps £150 or so for the two nights in Antalya (yes, I appreciate that is not what you signed up for). That means you might be offered around £250. You can press the case at that point legally, but I suggest a better response is to ask your travel insurer for the difference – having demonstrated you have done your best with the holiday firm.
You can also try to argue for your taxi fare, but I think this would be seen as a luxury. If you are not happy with the insurer’s response, take your case to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Email your question to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments