Covid: for many Britons, summer vacation abroad could be compromised
Audio 01:23
Spain (here at Madrid airport) has been demanding a negative PCR test or proof of vaccination for tourists from the UK since Monday.
REUTERS / Sergio Perez
Text by: RFI Follow
4 min
Tourists from the UK were, until a few weeks ago, welcomed with open arms in southern Europe, but the rapid rise in the number of Delta variant cases in the country has led some to return to restrictions.
This is the case of Spain for example, which has required a negative PCR test or proof of vaccination since Monday.
Portugal and Malta now even impose a quarantine on all travelers who have not received the two doses of the vaccine.
These last minute changes are disrupting the organization of many families with children.
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With our correspondent in London,
Claire Digiacomi
For her summer vacation, Sarah Cluskey had everything planned. Tickets for Portugal, departure July 17, and the rental of a villa for the whole family. But she has just learned that a quarantine was now imposed on unvaccinated over 12s. Problem, her first 13-year-old daughter is not yet eligible for vaccination, and the second has only received one dose. “
If the situation doesn't change,
” she says, “
we
'll have no choice but to cancel our trip. Because I can't go on vacation and leave my kids locked in with nothing to do while I'm enjoying myself. It really wouldn't be a vacation ...
"
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Read also:
Covid-19: faced with the spread of the Delta variant, the United Kingdom is counting on vaccination
Same concern for Emma Fairhurst who must travel to Portugal with her unvaccinated son.
With only three weeks to go, she still hopes the situation will change: “
I don't know what to do, I think we just have to wait.
And maybe we'll make the decision three days before our flight, when we really know what we can and can't do.
"
What saddens Sarah the most, the mother of the two daughters, is that these restrictions particularly affect young people.
“
I find it really very frustrating because families are not going to be able to go on vacation,”
she laments.
Children have suffered greatly from this crisis with the closure of schools, and it has had an impact on their mental health.
"
Sarah Cluskey has already prepared to lose the 3,000 pounds, or 3,500 euros, spent on the rental in Portugal.
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To read also: Covid-19: what impact of the Delta variant on children?
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Coronavirus
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