Can I go on holiday this year? Travel expert on summer breaks after lockdown

14 May 2020, 15:42 | Updated: 7 June 2023, 08:56

Travel expert on whether we can go on holiday this year

By Adrian Sherling

Will you be able to go on a summer holiday this year once lockdown ends? A travel expert told LBC what you can expect for your getaway in 2020.

The government is due to continue their easing of the coronavirus lockdown over the next few months and people will have been casting their minds forwards to the summer.

Normally, Brits would be dreaming of a trip to the Mediterranean, but may have to look a little closer to home this year.

Nick Ferrari spoke to The Sun's Travel Editor Lisa Minot to find out what we can expect this summer.

Can I go to Europe on a summer holiday?

If I'm honest, I don't think European holidays are going to start up any time soon.

There's no consensus around Europe yet about when lockdowns are going to be over and borders will re-open. I don't think it's going to be this summer.

A month ago, I would have said September or October would be the earliest we could go back into Europe and I'm doubtful about that even now.

Will Brits be heading to a European beach this summer?
Will Brits be heading to a European beach this summer? Picture: PA

Should I pay the final deposit on my summer holiday?

The summer holiday is when most people take their holiday and eight weeks before - around now - is when you have to pay the final balance on that holiday. The main question I'm being asked at the moment is should I pay the final balance.

That depends on how much you've paid as a deposit. If you've paid a small deposit, perhaps it might be worth you losing that small amount of money. But you need to check the terms and conditions with your holiday provider, because there may be some sort of penalty if you don't pay that full balance.

If you have paid a large deposit and only have a small amount left to pay, it's probably worth paying that small amount because then, if it's a package holiday, you'll get that protection from Atol. That means you will get your money back and the holiday is protected.

When will Heathrow be full again?
When will Heathrow be full again? Picture: PA

Will we have to quarantine after coming back from Europe?

It's chaos isn't it? Nobody really has any clue what's going on and it's not being helped by mixed messages coming from the government.

We have this idea that we will be introducing a 14-day quarantine for anyone coming into the UK, but we haven't introduced it yet. Then we might not be introducing it if you come from France or Ireland. But the EU say we can't have country-by-country agreements and it has to be EU-wide.

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