Pre Arrival Tests for England announced

A snowHead

@Snowsartre, you have to take a pre-flight test before your flight home, that's in addition to the day 2 test, it's ridiculous.

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

This has worked okay for us.

- Forthcoming trip to Finnish Lapland. I spoke to the hotel who said the airport (just 10 mins away) have a set up available to everyone for quick result PCR and Rapid Antigen tests.

- Arosa. The days 4 to 7 test to satisfy the Swiss, we’ll now time it to double up as the UK re-entry test results.

(We did these to ‘return to the UK’ tests in the summer in the Med, a seamless experience).

Yet more hurdles, but I think Sajid Javed/the scientists are wise to help prevent a repeat of past slowness. Perhaps Omicron won’t come to much for an overwhelmingly vaccinated population, we’ll find out more within 2 or 3 weeks.

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Never did I think I'd be hitting new psychological lows 2yrs into the pandemic but with this announcement someone is going to have to scrape me off the floor.

The whole year the prospect of snowboarding this winter, reuniting with friends abroad and making use of my Magic Pass has kept me going more than anything else.

Now thanks to the testing nightmare it is so financially and logistically unfeasible I just can't see how I'll be strapping in within the foreseeable at all.

The fabulous snowy start to the season is just making it even worse.

The quicker this variant spreads and proves itself to be the soft-as-shite non pathogenic saviour that we all hope/expect it to be the better. Can anyone say anything please to cheer this despondent snowhead up??? Sad

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Well the return test can be a lateral flow which is dead easy to get in most french pharmacies and takes about 15 mins
It cost euro 25.01 (prices as at September)
Not great but best I can do Eh oh!

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@RichardB, thank you - appreciate that - is it an LFT or PCR that is required for the pre-departure from Canada test (and is it 72/48/24 hours before take off?). Just about worth doing as hope to be away for two weeks.

Canada does not seem to have much availability of the 3hr PCR tests - all I could find was 900CADs Shocked

and not Calgary airport (forgotten as wasn't relevant).

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Well the return test can be a lateral flow which is dead easy to get in most french pharmacies and takes about 15 mins
It cost euro 25.01 (prices as at September)

After all it is free

What are French rules if pre return LFT is positive?
Do I have to find a hotel to self isolate in for before I can return to the UK?
For how long?

I'm less concerned about the test than the consequences of the results.

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Re hd's comment: another depressing aspect of all this is that as soon as the UK gov't agrees to a restriction, the people agitating for restrictions always want more. One of the rival politicians has already said, why give people 48 hours to get their pre- return test, why not make it more difficult than that?
And others say, let's have a day 8 test as well. And isolation in the meantime. You can't be too careful, there's a global pandemic permanently now.

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hd,

We are all in the same boat. It's scandalous that it has come to this 2 years down the line. It makes me wonder why we have all bothered with the vaccine take up. rolling eyes

As I said earlier, I have been compliant with the rules to date but this is now the final straw that broke the camel's back.

Shapps says one thing one day then does another thing the next. Shocked

How can anyone take this government seriously? Puzzled

You can rest assured that you are not alone.

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You know it makes sense.

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

A snowHead

A snowHead

Quick question on the go so apologies if already answered, is this instead of of the day 2,test on return?

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

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These (return to UK) antigen tests can be self administered.

For what it's worth, apparently if you put the dropper solution straight on without a swab you still get -ve test Eh oh!

These tests are pure theatre. It's just SAGE/UK Gov showing they're doing the right thing (and/or an indirect way to donate to Tory party funds rolling eyes

)

Don't let this latest thing stop your ski trip.

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After all it is free

Didn’t think it was possible to add any more to was wrong.
Family of 5 travelling Boxing Day .
Require 33 tests for a 1 week ski holiday.
Surely that had to be us out!

I can take eldest for his jab Tuesday and they will reduce us to the just the 27 tests,

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I’d happily cheat this BS

You know it makes sense.

BBC news this evening featured an 'explanation' of the govt / public health reasoning for the new pre-travel testing.
Scientists have just advised that omicron may have a shorter incubation period than previous variants, and milder symptoms. Therefore people are less likely to realise they've got it, and so less likely to self isolate, and such cases wouldn't be detected. Therefore it is more of a threat. And therefore tougher action is needed to control it.
I wonder, if and when a variant comes along with a longer incubation period and more severe symptoms, would the same advisors advocate less action to control it.......

Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:

Despairing - this is never ending. Next year there will be a new variant and more hysteria. The joy of planning looking forward to something, normal life - permanently out of reach.

A snowHead

@peerless ploughman, so on that basis we need tighter restrictions for a variant that causes milder disease?

You couldn't make this up.

A snowHead

Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?

Don't give up people. Be determined; the latest rules are just some hoops to jump through.

It will be worth it. It will!

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Yeah the tests are inconvenient but our flights and hotel were so cheap because of the effect of the requirements ...so overall I don't think it is working out more expensive for us.

The risk and uncertainty of possibly testing positive abroad is not great but we got the best travel insurance we could which covers additional costs if this happens and we are lucky to have jobs where we could work from abroad. Taking our work stuff with us just in case and determined to try and make a go of it. It seems pretty crazy that it was easier to go to France in June 2020 though.

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I honestly was all for the will be totally worth it view
But as a
Family this now takes us to 33 tests and over £1000 there has to be a limit and think we’ve reached it.

We’ve all just had covid, we’ve all had our vaccinations that we can. We’ve done everything we can and now 33 test!
5 x pre departure lft
5x pre return lft
5x day 2 pcr
6x daily lft x 3

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I too am a bit fecked off by this " Don't panic Mr Mainwareing!" attitude by the govt.

I think I'd be relatively content if they stuck to their guns re vax being the primary control or even be happy to take a lft every damn day if we could use our existing supplies. But the thought of this theatre and the prospect of being stranded outside the UK at own expense while each traveller funnels £100s into the pockets of Tory donors and other chancers really sticks in the craw.

And it's the prospect of this being a forever panic that really concerns. Sucking all the joy out of travel each time by layering on stress, cost, risk and uncertainty.

After all it is free

What a fcking shitshow

Apparently Scotland is nice at this time of year Laughing

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Help!!

Pre Arrival Tests for England announced

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