Where should I book my post-pandemic city break?

Simon Calder answers your questions on what the vaccine means for travel and Christmas gift ideas

The magnificent Renaissance-era Cloth Hall in Krakow (Getty/iStock)

Q Now that the vaccine seems to be on the way and we can start recalibrating our travel plans, I wondered what your top recommendation would be for a weekend city break in the early summer of 2021?

Keith O’B

A When I read your question, the location that immediately came to mind was Porto. I first visited Portugal’s second city since 1991 and was won over instantly by its profound three-dimensional beauty and faded grandeur. In the ensuing three decades I have made many subsequent trips to the city teetering over the north bank of the Douro River. I have watched Porto blossom with 21st-century facets such as a hyper-efficient transport system and the startling Casa da Musica concert hall, designed by Rem Koolhaas. Yet the character, charm and aroma – from the port houses across the river – remain as compelling as ever. And if the Atlantic isn’t too brisk for you, Porto has a fine city beach west of town.

Next up in my instant response: the last city break I had before lockdown. It was to Krakow in Poland. The city is blessed by beautiful architecture and a rich heritage, but cursed by a tortured recent history including the atrocities of the Second World War and four decades on the wrong side of the Iron Curtain. Today it is both indulgent and intriguing.

Both Porto and Krakow are likely to be well connected from the UK by early summer, and also offer excellent value for money.

Finally, the winner of any competition to find the nation with the most diverse range of cities would surely be Italy: Naples, Venice and Trieste could barely be less alike. But in early summer I urge you to stay in the northwestern corner. Choose Genoa if you do like to be beside the seaside along with antiquity and civic drama – or Turin if you prefer the quintessence of magnificence, with an Alpine backdrop thrown in.

With so many unknowns on the horizon in the next six months, I caution against committing cash any time soon. But start dreaming, reading up and planning your great escape.

Q Now we have hope of a vaccine, my friends and I want to start thinking about travelling again. We think this will be very possible in the new year. As such, I am thinking of giving travel vouchers at Christmas. Do you think this is a sensible idea?

Megan D

A Everyone will welcome the prospect that the coronavirus threat can be tackled and that, in time, the tangle of travel restrictions will be loosened.

The positive indications that an effective vaccine will soon be available did wonders for the financial health of the travel industry, at least in terms of their share prices, and spurred a surge in bookings. Now for the inevitable “but …”.

Quite rightly, the vaccine will be allocated according to medical need, and the roll-out is likely to take many months. Meanwhile, nothing has changed yet. No one from England is allowed to travel for fun until 3 December, at the earliest, and even though the Welsh “firebreak lockdown” is over, people in Wales have been told not to make unnecessary journeys outside. Northern Ireland has a similar warning.

Abroad, restrictions on UK visitors are increasing, particularly with the demand for a negative PCR test result before departure. And from the vast majority of countries worldwide, arrivals to the UK must self-isolate for 14 days.

Yet the vaccine news, coupled with moves towards increased testing as an alternative to quarantine, makes me (and evidently you) more optimistic about the prospects for meaningful travel in 2021. And I am celebrating by dreaming and planning – but not yet committing in terms of hard cash.

I am not a fan of travel vouchers because they come with so many restrictions attached. Hard cash (with a stipulation from you that it must be spent on a holiday) is more prosaic – but more useful. Alternatively, a guidebook will provide plenty of ideas and inspiration.

Q I’m hoping to travel to the Canaries as soon possible. But I am getting mightily confused about what documentation is needed in terms of Covid-testing?

Caroline H

A Confusion abounds because the red tape and restrictions for travel to and from Spain’s Canary Islands are complicated and fast-changing. A reminder that, at present, no one living in England is allowed to take a holiday domestically or internationally until 3 December at the earliest. Even though the Welsh “firebreak lockdown” is over, people in Wales have been urged not to make unnecessary journeys outside the country.

But Northern Ireland’s four-week lockdown, with the warning “avoid all unnecessary travel”, comes to an end today, and people in Scotland who are living in tiers 0, 1 and 2 – which covers the majority of the population – are able to travel. From tomorrow, Saturday 14 November, British holidaymakers to the islands who intend to stay in tourist accommodation (as opposed to a private apartment or villa) must produce a certificate showing a negative Covid-19 test result taken within the 72 hours before arrival in the Canaries.

“This must include the date and time that the test was administered, the person’s identifying data, the authorised verification centre and the negative test result,” says the islands’ tourist board. “The certificate should preferably be in English or Spanish.” Stays in private accommodation do not require a test, but the authorities “recommend you at least have an antigen test before you travel, in the interests of everyone’s health”.

Since that requirement was announced, the government in Madrid has decided that evidence of a negative PCR test in the 72 hours prior to arrival will be compulsory for visitors from all countries designated high risk by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (which is almost all of them, including the UK). This comes into effect on 23 November. Fortunately, the same certificate can be used for both purposes.

Finding a local test in the UK at a reasonable cost is tricky: the prices I am seeing tend to be around £150. NHS tests must not be used to facilitate holidays. But the authorities in the Canaries can at least offer you one bonus, saying: “If you do not have medical insurance, we will provide you with an AXA policy free of charge in Canary Islands to cover all expenses relating to Covid-19.”

Q We were due to go on our honeymoon to Antigua in April, flying from Gatwick with British Airways. In mid-March, the travel agent contacted us offering to move it to 11 November at an extra cost of £300. We were very flustered at the height of the pandemic so begrudgingly agreed. But obviously due to the English lockdown, we were unable to travel. Everything I have read implies we should be owed a full refund as it was a package holiday. But annoyingly, British Airways didn’t cancel the flight. The company are only offering us half our money back and the rest in BA vouchers that we have to book through them, not even direct with BA.

They say that because there is no Foreign Office ban to Antigua, we should have gone ahead with the holiday because the flight still operated and the hotel is open. Our bank says we can’t do a chargeback because the service was still offered, and our insurance company won’t allow us to claim either because it was a government order. Can you help?

Name supplied

A Fortunately, assuming your honeymoon was for less than a month, I can demonstrate that it was effectively cancelled and you are, therefore, entitled to a full refund – even without having to get legalistic about being unable to travel due to the lockdown rules.

After the government prescribed Lockdown 2.0 for England, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic – the main airlines between the UK and the Caribbean – cancelled almost every departure. Your outbound flight operated as scheduled, in order to bring people already on holiday back to the UK, but no other Antigua-London flights are scheduled until 11 December. So you can argue the trip was cancelled because there was physically no way of bringing you back. Tell the company that my analysis of the Package Travel Regulations indicates they must pay you all your money back (and if they say, “we could have flown you home via the US”, you can point out that setting foot in America triggers 14 days of self-isolation back in the UK).

I am also concerned about the dealings you had in March. At that stage, when it was clear the holiday was likely to be cancelled, I believe a decent company would have recommended you wait to see – rather than persuading you to part with more money for a rearranged trip in the lowest of seasons.

If the travel firm still says “no”, I suggest you go back to your card company to point out that the trip was cancelled.

Email your questions to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder