The novel Coronavirus & travel planning
 

Hello All:

I'd appreciate some advice and thoughts from the regulars here:

I was planning to travel to Sicily in mid-February, to to pick up my motorcycle that is in storage there, then take the ferry Palermo to Tunis and spend three weeks touring in Tunisia. I'm very familiar with North Africa, I spend a month in Morocco last year, and spent two years living and working in both Algeria and Libya during the 1990s.

I'm getting a little worried about possible problems that this coronavirus could create with international & intercontinental travel if there is any amount of spread of the virus in Europe or (God forbid) Africa.

I'm not particularly worried about getting the virus - that's not my concern. My concern is that if there is any spread of the virus in Europe or Africa, very large scale quarantines (travel restrictions, border closures) could be imposed. Hence I have put things on hold for the moment.

I would sure like to begin this trip around the first of March - but, what do you think the outlook is for this kind of travel with the current state of affairs pertaining to this virus?

All responses gratefully acknowledged.

Michael

Unfortunately, at this point no one is certain how the virus spreads, how readily it will spread and how serious it may turn out to be.

One thing for sure: it has already caused a great many people problems in their efforts to travel and move freely. Travel restrictions, quarantines, and closed borders are already in existence and look to be increasing.

So, no conclusions, it is very early days for this virus.

Not too helpful, I know. You are wise to be cautious, I think, and to make alternate plans just in case.

...........shu

I'm making plans to travel in March and again in late summer. I wouldn't go to China right now, but that's in part because my rather irrational, alarmist government says they'd quarantine me when I returned. I might be reluctant to head out on a cruise with stops in Japan right now, but then again I'm not a cruising kind've guy.

The real answer is that no one knows what's going to happen past, say, the end of this week. Best bet as far as I can tell is to make plans but stay flexible...and read the fine print on any travel insurance you buy. If I had a bike in Sicily like the OP, I'd go there and carry on with my trip, but I'd keep my ear to the ground and be ready to abort.

It's pretty clear that we're still at greater risk from influenza than we are from this new virus, and when was the last time you arranged your travel plans around flu season? Instead, you probably try not to let people sneeze on you. Only half of the US public gets vaccinated against influenza, while the rest basically just trust their dumb luck. This is a virus which kills between 12,000 and 61,000 annually in the United States (according to the CDC), and from 291,000 to 650,000 internationally. That's yearly, i.e., this year, last year, next year, and the year after that.

If the new coronavirus turns out to be as deadly as influenza, I'll be very surprised. On the other hand, I've been wrong before....

Mark

Hi Mark:

Thanks for your thoughts. As I noted in the original post, I'm not particularly concerned about catching the virus - my concerns are more about travel restrictions that might arise as a result of new infections appearing in Europe or Africa.

I think I'll go ahead and book a flight, but make sure the ticket is one that permits refunds....

Michael

Wouldn't standard holiday insurance cover that sort of thing? When the volcano in Iceland erupted and stopped large amounts of air travel the insurance paid out for people that were stuck away from home (some friends were in Egypt diving and the only accomodation easily available was the dive boat they were about to get off. So they went diving for another week.)

I'm heading for Siberia, Magadan and the Stans this year. I think the question is a good one, but the answer nobody really knows. It's certainly not impossible that the virus escapes quarantine and forces many countries to take their own precautions, and in such a case, borders could close to leisure travellers. Like the OP I agree the risk of disruption is far higher than the risk from the virus itself - with an average mortality rate of 2% it's not the most dangerous thing out there (though it does seem quite contagious).

I'm tempted to call the Asian leg of my journey off for this year and instead spend some time bumbling round Scandinavia and Morocco, but TBH I've spent so much time planning this one that I'm very reluctant to cancel it. I'm not leaving until May so I'll make a decision then.

Hi Jay:

I'm not concerned about any additional costs that might be incurred, I'm concerned about getting trapped in one country in the event this virus "gets out" in Europe or North Africa and everyone starts shutting down borders.

There are worse places to get stuck in than Tunisia, I suppose, but it would be a PITA to get stuck there for a couple of months due to imposition of a quarantine by Europe or (my home country) Canada.

Michael

I don't want to criticize your attempts to be cautious and anticipate what might go wrong with your trip, but....

Following this line of thought, you'd end up not going anyplace at all. How likely is it, really, that you'll get "stuck there for a couple of months?" How likely that your home country will quarantine you at all, much less for longer than 2 weeks (as is being done now for people coming from China, based on the presumed latency period for the virus).

If determined, you can find reasons to stay at home; in fact, you could have found sufficient reasons to stay home a year ago, or a decade, or since the day you were born. These reasons are always present, and there are always people who stay home as a result...or travel only to places they deem safe. The question is, where are you going to draw the line?

More specificity than that is more or less impossible, since no one really knows, at least about this particular virus. Either go, or don't, and whatever you choose, try not to look back. Put another way, what are the likely consequences if you guess wrong about the situation in Tunisia in, say, a month? Either way, you'll come out of it ok, with or without a Tunisian vacation, with or without two weeks in quarantine on some godforsaken military base in, say, Goose Bay.

Or you'll stay home. If it were me, I'd be irritable as hell and probably lose a friend or two.

Following that line of thought, if one were to travel and then closed borders made overstaying a visa inevitable how would the authorities react?

I think under the circumstances there would not be a problem. I have overstayed visas a couple of times in the past (during my working career) due to events out of everyone's control such as extreme weather or the outbreak of war, and my experience has been that as long as you contact the appropriate authorities (police or immigration, depending on the country) ahead of time and let them know of the possible upcoming problem, they are pretty easy to deal with.

Michael

This virus is very different to seasonal Flu

It’s appears to very easy to catch and unlike seasonal flu, nobody will have any immunity against it. This means that a much higher % of the population will catch it and in mid Feb it doesn’t look as if the attempts to restrict the spread of the Disease are going to succeed.

The Kill rate of the virus appears to be in the range of 1-2% , this is much higher than seasonal flu which tends to have a kill rate of .002%

Wherever you live in the world health systems will be overwhelmed.

I would be happy to be proved wrong, but I would be cautious.

I'm considering cancelling my trip from Melbourne > London in April - October due to corona virus.

I planned to travel SE Asia > India > Pakistan > China >Stans > Iran > Turkey > Europe.

Given most of the borders are closed with China and Iran I won't make this through. The unpredictability of the virus and its high spread do not fill me with confidence it will end in the months I intend to travel.

I'm not concerned about catching the virus itself. I am concerned it will push back my itinerary. Especially if I travel through China. I can't afford to be quarantined for 14-days and hassled at the borders, getting stuck somewhere and not being able to visit the places I want.

Dylan

Current border closure reports:
https://caravanistan.com/forum/viewt...hp?f=9&t=12239

I'm still sitting on the fence, trying to decide what to do - whether to go, or whether to stay in Canada.

I have an air ticket to fly Toronto - Rome - Catania (Sicily) next Tuesday. My plan is/was to pick up my moto from storage in Catania on Thursday, ride to Palermo, and get on a ferry to Tunisia Saturday.

I'm watching things day by day - but the outlook is getting worse all the time.

Michael

From the "Overland in Iran" Facebook group:

I'm sure this is just the first of many such cases.

Damn, I thought worse case would be getting stuck or quarantined in one country or another, I hadn't thought about the possibility of getting stuck between borders. Now that would truly suck!

As others have said, I'm not particularly worried about catching the bug itself, but am worried about borders being closed or getting quarantined for some extended period.

I'm planning to ride around the Black Sea, so if the Georgian-Turkish border or Turkish-Greek/Bulgarian borders were closed, I'd be kind of screwed.

I've already got a non-refundable ticket to Europe but if borders along my route are closed, or look about to close, just before I leave (in mid-May), I will probably cancel the trip.

Hello Michael,

It seems getting worse and it seems Italy is your problem, not Tunisia. I was just thinking, could you leave your bike in Tunisia and fly home from there after your trip? The last 24 hours has been an increase in both infection cases and deaths in Italy. Although the 2 persons confirmed having the disease in my home country (Iceland) arrived from northern Italy, our government has now declared all of Italy a danger zone and all passengers arriving Iceland from Italy now has to go in 14 days quarantine, both locals and foreigners alike.

Best regards,
Rögnvaldur

Hi Rögnvaldur:

Thanks for the information you provided, it is thought-provoking.

At the moment, my schedule is to fly to Sicily from Canada on Tuesday the 3rd of March (with a plane change in Rome, in other words, Toronto-Rome-Catania), pick up the bike, and take the ferry from Palermo (Sicily) to Tunis on Saturday March 7th.

Once I'm in Tunisia, I'm not too concerned about getting back to Canada. I could take a ferry from Tunisia to either France or Italy, leave the bike in one of those two countries - or any other Western European country, for that matter - and then head back to Canada. Or, as you suggested, just leave the bike in Tunisia (in bond) and fly home from there.

I'm retired, so if I get stuck in Tunisia or (after leaving Tunisia) in Europe for a while, that's not a big concern.

My biggest worry right now is whether or not I will be able to get to Tunisia as planned on March 7th. What I fear is getting to Italy, then getting stuck in Italy. :( Not so much because of virus worries, but because who wants to get stuck in Italy, virus or no virus? :)

Michael

I'm going from the UK to Cape Town via the west Africa route starting in May. I figure that with all of the other things(not) to worry about it's just one more to add to the list.................so I've decided not to worry about it :mchappy:

You're only old once :D

While no one really knows how far this virus will progress, it would seem that every country bordering Italy closing its' borders is a pretty remote possibility at best, especially considering that most of them are EU members and part of the Schengen Agreement. If I were in your boots I'd still go and be prepared to change plans on the fly if anything takes a turn for the worse.

Not saying that it can't happen, but the possibility seems pretty remote.

I´m in the same dilema, I´d planned a trip for about 6 weeks to the Stans via Turkey and Georgia in May and June so I´d set off in about 8 weeks time. My last hurdle was, until now, the Russian visa which I am about to apply for.
I´m gonna wait another week or two before making my decision, but, I reckon this is the tip of the iceberg disruption wise as there seems to be a lot of changes every day as regards the border openings. As late as today the Uzbeks have said that UK pasport holders, amongst others, would have to stay for 14 days in there accomadation.. .. it seems to be changing on a day to day basis and my Adventure that I have been looking forward to is starting to feel like a battle of nerves. ... Like I say I´ll leave it a bit until I take my final decision, but, it´s looking dodgy!!

Well, here's an interesting update:

Last week I booked passage on a ferry from Palermo to Tunis, departing Saturday March 7th. I booked this through an agent, "Direct Ferries".

Yesterday (March 4th), the Tunisian government announced that they were suspending the ferry service from northern Italy (in other words, Genoa) to Tunis because of coronavirus concerns. The government told the ferry operator to stop that service.

A few hours after that announcement was made, I got an email from the ticket agent telling me that the Saturday March 7th ferry from Palermo - about as far from northern Italy as you can get - to Tunis had been cancelled, and that they were refunding my payment for the ticket.

BUT... The ferry company's website (Grimaldi Line) still shows the Saturday March 7th Palermo to Tunis ferry as operational, and the ferry line is still selling tickets.

I don't know what is going on. I'm in Catania, Sicily right now, and will ride to Palermo Friday morning and try to sort things out at Grimaldi Line's head office there.

If there is one take-away from all of this, I think it is that the next few months are not the time to be departing on multi-country trips - see fellow forum member Radzz's post directly above.

I think the chaos arising from this virus is going to get worse before it gets better.

Michael

PS: I flew Air Canada from Toronto to Rome on Wednesday. I have never seen a flight so empty. Only 4 passengers out of 42 total in business class, and only about 25% full in the back. When I booked this flight a month ago, it was nearly sold out, with a waitlist for business class.

if this gets bad, you will be the travelling stranger bringing disease and pestilence, so you might not get the sort of welcome you expect.

I agree, and as of this week I have very reluctantly cancelled my Russian visa application, that was going to take me UK to Magadan and back via the Stans. It's a gamble of course, and it may all blow over in which case I'll be even more gutted, but I can see an awful lot more chaos happening before it stabilises. I don't think this is a good year to be setting off on a long trip.

As you may have heard the British airline Flybe went bust today. They had been struggling for a while, but a friend who works there tells me since the coronavirus crisis hit they have had whole flights going off almost empty.

Sure, it is changing on a day to day basis and will probably continue to do so for the next few months. So why not go ahead and get the Russian visa to give yourself additional "optionality", so that you can decide whether or not to go much closer to your travel date? Yes, it will cost you, but wouldn't it be worth it?

Worse before better sounds like a safe bet. On the other hand, I've been complaining almost nonstop about how full flights have been these past few decades, and I'm looking forward to maybe stretching out across 3 or 4 seats during my upcoming Air Canada flights...provided they're not canceled.

I've already been re-scheduled to spend an overnight in the Montreal airport, and if there is further juggling i expect it'll get awkward, but things do tend to work out in the end. I'm only slightly more concerned about my vaguely-planned summer trip to Central Asia, but I'll keep planning and try to keep my options open.

According to one report I read, corona virus cases are doubling every 6 days in my area of the US--most of them undiagnosed. If that remains true--obviously it's all guesswork at this point--we'll all have been exposed repeatedly within 3 or 4 months anyway. I don't see any practical way around this, given I'm not prepared to retire from human contact and live as a mountaintop hermit.

I'll be back to whine and moan if my holiday, scheduled to start in a week and a half, evaporates in the turmoil.

Mark

Yes it´s a good point and an option, but it´going to cost me roughly 500euros for the double entry visa I need plus all the E visas to the stand lands. I´ll give it 2 weeks and if it hasn´t improved by then , that´s it :-)

I have got my flight booked to Ireland and was planning on heading off at the start of April, my passport is currently at the Russian consulate being processed for a business visa, im really not sure how this situation is going to escalate, Italy has just gone full lock down and I would not be surprised at all if this could be repeated in other countries within a month or two. I was going to go to Central Asia and it already looks like some are imposing travel restrictions that make it logistically much harder for me and again, this will probably only get stricter.

I am seriously considering cancelling my flight and taking the hit in my wallet on my visa, I guess the silver lining is I can save for longer and make the trip better when it eventually clears up

Hey guys, would like to know what you think about my situation and what you would do:
My friend and I have booked transportation of our bikes from Norway to Alicante, Spain in less than two weeks, and then we're flying down a month later to pick up the bikes and start our three month trip to Morocco, Spain, Portugal, France and Italy.

However, how this Corona craze is escalating, I'm worrying that Spain might be closed down when we're supposed to go there, and that our bikes will be stuck in Spain while we're somewhere else. I've been thinking about keeping the bike in Norway until departure time, and either ride down to Morocco from Norway, or if Spain or Morocco is closed for entry, we could go somewhere else. We've already paid for transport and flight tickets, so that would be money down the drain, and wr would get less time to ride in Morocco. It would be annoying to throw the time and money away, but I would be even more regretful if our bikes are unreachable and we don't get to go at all.

What would you guys do in this situation?

Personally I would first look at my travel insurance to see if it covers me for cancelled flights due to pandemics and epidemics - some have an exclusion for that - to see if I could get my money back on flights etc.

As far as the trip is concerned I suspect that your best option is that which is most flexible - so riding the bike down may be it. The destinations may have to change as well, but you may have to accept that it isn't going to happen this year.

Allow me to turn your question around in the other direction, this might assist you in making your decision:

Last Saturday (March 7th 2020), I escaped from Palermo, Italy to Tunisia on an Italian ferry. I'm now in Tunisia, riding around. So far, sounds good, but:

Am I going to be able to get out of here? This is what I am now a wee bit worried about. Even if there is no government intervention, there is a good chance that the ferry companies will cancel sailings from Europe to North Africa simply because there won't be enough people on board to pay the fuel bill. There were only 60 people on the ferry Italy - Tunisia last weekend.

There are only two ferry destinations from Tunisia: Italy and France. Obviously, I don't want to return to Italy, I would not go there even if the ferry company gave me a free ticket. That leaves one destination - Marseilles in France. If the ferry company operating that route pulls the plug, that means I need to start thinking about applying for Tunisian residency. :)

So, to return to your question: How would you feel if you made it all the way down to Morocco, but were then unable to get back home?

Michael

Michael,

I would probably take a ferry to France

Just have to assume that versions of what’s happening in Italy will be all over the Mediterranean over the next 6 weeks or so.

The kill rates in Italy are a bit alarming at the moment.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do

Charles

Thanks for your input!

I'm not concerned about the money, more about having a bike I can't reach. I'm getting more and more certain there's a risk Spain could be closed off before I can get there to pick up my bike. As you say Michael, being stuck in Morocco could also be a bummer. I have planned a three month trip, exactly where I go doesn't matter. There's 51 000 km of TET waiting to be explored, I'm sure I'll figure out some other places to visit if Spain and/ or Morocco is unreachable. I'll wait and see until next week about shipping the bike, but it doesn't look like a good idea at the moment..

I think you are on the right track with that thinking - this summer is not going to be a good time to be far away from home.

I'm currently sitting in a hotel in Tozeur, Tunisia, trying to figure out what my options are for getting home to Canada.

The situation reminds me of an old saying in the aviation industry: "It's better to be on the ground, wanting to be in the air, than in the air, wanting to be on the ground."

Michael

I hope you can figure it out and get home safely, Michael!

Indeed. I have a bike trip in the USA coming up in just under a month and starting to wonder about whether Coronavirus is going to make it impossible. It's bad enough having to consider the health implications of catching it (particularly as I'm in the 'serious' demographic) but the increasingly severe travel restrictions that are now starting to appear are adding an extra dimension. At the moment the UK is not included in the travel from the EU ban the US has just brought in but I wonder if it's only a matter of time. Even if I did get there am I going to be able to get back.

I'm still planning on my August bike trip being possible but I have to admit I'm holding back on booking ferries / hotels etc.

It looks like all flights to the US from Europe are off for non-US residents or citizens for a while. Flights are still open to all from the UK although I am unclear as to whether non-UK citizens can use them but I have not seen any specific ban but either way, I am glad not to have any trips booked at the moment, it is a good time to be at home.

I can see all UK-US flights being fully booked with lots of connecting flights attached. How the US authorities plan to deal with that I don't know, but I suspect they will find a way.

Rumour has it that the UK is excluded because Trump has golfing resorts in Scotland......

If you are going to shut down flights, there is no logical reason to exclude the UK

I’m supposed to be skiing in France in a weeks time, not sure if I will be going.

That's what's top of my trip worries at the moment, that so many banned Schengen travellers will now be flying out of London that Trump will chuck the UK + Ireland onto the list in a week or two.

Skiing is an interesting one. We have a flat in a French ski resort which is let out through an agency for the winter. There's been a huge music festival in the resort in March for the last few years but Coronavirus has killed it this year. I had an email from the agency yesterday saying that the flat was now vacant for that week. I've toyed with going down for a week's skiing but it's too short notice. That's one of the town's main moneyspinners for the year gone. How many day or weekend skiers are going to rethink their plans - particularly as it's virtually on the Italian border - is anyone's guess.

Per 1pm on 12March2020 from a reputable source:

Trump's EU coronavirus travel suspension explained: who is affected and will it help?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...vel-suspended?

It's a clusterfcuk

A UK staycation is a go go

The NC 500 will be hideously busy this year, but possibly a reduction in camper vans

Very good!

I've ridden it a couple of times when it was called the "west coast of Scotland". It'll be great to go again, especially if the winnabagel brigade stay away.

Don't worry, it will get worse! :thumbdown:

Wait till Europe retaliates by blocking US citizens from entering the EU, airlines cancel all transatlantic flight due to lack of passengers, etc.

Currently scheduled to fly from the US to Germany in mid-May then ride around the Black Sea, but the chances of some of the relevant borders getting closed seems kinda high, so I'm waiting to see what happens.

Issue with Skiing is that most years you come down with a day of Lurgy, always believed it was due to the bugs from all over Europe having a mingle


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The contagion effects of reciprocity and airlines scaling back operations/ going bust are highly likely.

A friend works for BA. Since middle of last week they're offering unpaid leave, voluntary redundancy and early retirement to cabin and flight crews.

Border closures are already happening in Italy and the Stans, just to name a few.

I reckon you should be considering a ride in the US as your plan B.

Maybe you could do mine and tell me what it was like :rofl:

What a great idea. Everyone should just create a Tellytubbies inspired GoPro YouTube movie to share with their opposite number...

Or just watch a Ewen and Thingy film or 2. Think of the cost savings and all our contributions to reversing climate change by not flying and the factories closing due to lack of workers and customers.

One of the big UK insurance companies has stopped issuing any further travel policies.

This may mean that they think that the UK govt is going a issue advice telling people not to travel, which in the UK is a trigger for making claims on policies for not being able to travel


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I'm afraid that the deal-killer for you will be unavailability of travel health insurance that would cover you if you need health care for Coronavirus whilst you are abroad.

Back at home, in Canada, the various travel insurance companies have started to declare that CV is a "known risk", and for that reason, new policies issued will not cover CV related health expenses.

I'm lucky, I don't turn 65 until next week, so I still have 7 days of worry-free travel left... :)

Michael

The UK Chief Medical Officer Is working on the assumption that COVID-19 will join the likes of seasonal flu, coughs and colds and re-emerge every year. Logically he is going to be right as it is out of the box now - something which SARS and Swine Flu thankfully never quite managed.

:yes:

:surrender:

If I have to scratch this trip I will do a car-camping trip somewhere in the US with my dog. Not nearly as interesting but he would be happy

Usually I'm not much of a stickler for insurance but I have to say that given the exorbitant costs of medical care in the US, I'd be wary of travelling in the US without medical coverage, even without a pandemic on the loose!

So today Ukraine, Georgia, and Turkey closed their borders, at least partially. That's not good, although who knows how things will be in six weeks. In any event, it is certainly time to start looking at Plan B.

Brits and Irish have been added to the no-fly list into the US.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-51891662

Namibia announced they are cancelling all their Independence celebrations and public gatherings. Not sure what border situation is but with there being a high population with HIV in southern african countries I'd guess all will have restrictions in next few days. I think many travellers would not want to be the individual who brought COVID19 to some town or village and wiped out part of the population, it's probably going to get there anyway but would anyone want to be the carrier?

Don’t count on predictability from our Commander-in-Tweets. Shit can change in D.C. by the hour and one hand doesn’t know what the other is doing.

I for one decided last week to bag my plans for riding to Mongolia and coming back to Europe by way of the Silk Road. Smaller countries with few resources are very likely to act pre-emptively to reduce their risk. Being stuck somewhere with borders closed, unable to go back or move forward...or having “flu-like symptoms” of any severity while holed up in a tent, sounds like a bad time. I figure I’ll do some more U.S. travel this year and revisit my plans next year when things (hopefully) have settled down.

A wise decision. Take it from someone who is presently stuck in Africa, with borders closed and unable to go out of the country (or even out of the hotel for the next 7 days).

Mongolia & the Silk Road will still be there next year.

Michael

I just hope he keeps to that line long enough for me to get (at least some of) my money back from the insurance co as my US trip in now in the bin.

Going forward my plans for HUBBUK in June and an ultramarathon in July still look ok but I see Grant has 'actioned' a couple of meets that were due to take place before the UK one so who knows and I'm trying to decide whether it's worth while continuing to train for the marathon. Then there's my next bike trip in August - but that's far enough ahead that it'll all be history by then - won't it? All I know is I'm putting any expenditure for 'public' events through a coronavirus filter from here on in.

It’s not about retaliation but smart actions in a difficult time.

None of the countries making these difficult decisions are doing it to golf longer or hurt other nations.

That kind of silly talk just causes grief. :thumbdown:

But maybe that’s what those “people” are trying for...

Sorry, it's not silly. I haven't read of any medical expert agreeing that banning flights to the US from Europe will do any good, since the virus is already apparently circulating widely in the US. Were flights from the US banned to protect foreigners? The flight ban was essentially a political decision, and not necessarily a smart one, especially since it was completely uncoordinated with medical experts or indeed any of the people that would implement, or be affected by, the decision.

And because it was implemented on an apparent whim, without advance planning or consulting any of the major participants, the result at many US airports was chaotic at best and almost certainly contributed greatly to the spread of the disease. This is not encouraging.

Meanwhile, countries are closing borders right and left, while local governments (the State of Washington in my case) are forcibly closing schools, restaurants, entertainment venues, libraries, and (gasp!) drinking establishments. Seriously: all of them, all at once. I've been wondering whether there is any precedent for this--certainly not in my lifetime. My understanding of epidemiology is rudimentary, but I'm not seeing any real surprises on that front. I've always thought my understanding of American political, commercial, and interpersonal trends was reasonably sophisticated, but it's in those realms where I've been taken totally by surprise.

(This post was immediately edited to strip out the disparaging political commentary which I should have known better than to include.)

Mark

Here in Norway things are shutting down quickly, the borders are all but closed, and we're all encouraged to stay as much away from other people as possible. As far as I've understood most other European countries are doing the same. It might seem rash to stop all air traffic, but I actually think it's a good decision. It seems social distancing is the best way to halt the virus, and stopping air traffic hinders the virus from spreading even more.

Something to say? Just step this way sir.

https://advrider.com/f/forums/church-state-money.49/

I always enjoy a bit of 'political' comment - makes a change from which oil should I use (does that count as a political comment?) doh

On another bike forum I frequent there was a strict 'bike topics only, everything else will be 'snipped'' rule enforced by the equivalent of Grant here. Sadly that person passed away unexpectedly a couple of years ago and although the forum continued it's now under a kind of collective 'rule by clique'. Slowly but surely the topics discussed have become nothing but politics (in its wider sense). Bike topics are now in the minority and a lot of people have drifted off. Personally I don't really mind whether it's bikes or travel or whatever as long as it's interesting but when the tone turns abusive or aggressive that does it for me. It's why I no longer visit the ABR site (or, tarring it all with the same brush, buy the magazine).

Agree, I want political views/rants/stock market disaster info, I know where to go. If I want travel/bike/how to information/lifestyle info, I want that and not much else. Thanks to the moderators.

Just got my Russian business visa from the post haha, might hang it up on the wall seeing as it has no other uses now

IoM TT 2020 Cancelled :(

https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-...YvTHwABrlAnDKM

We got our a week ago, leaving May, still hopeful' a lost of cash to waste and what else would we do with time off work..... Damn the disease

We may not have been able to kill this bug so far but we've sure managed to mortally wound the travel bug. On Wednesday Canada is closing its' borders (except with the USA) to all non citizens/residents.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/cbs...irus-1.5498866

The only exceptions will be:
Close relatives of citizens/residents.
Those involved in fighting Covid-19.
Those transporting goods.
Airline crews.
Diplomats.

No one displaying symptoms will be allowed to board a flight to Canada, including citizens/residents.

Some international flights will have to land at one of only 4 designated airports in order to facilitate proper screening. Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary.

So much for anyone's travel plans to Canada for now.

Funny how years of planning and preparation for a trip can be perhaps thwarted by a global pandemic, who'd have thought in 2020 we would have the world effectively on lockdown. The next month will be critical for all planning trips this year, when you negotiate an extended period of leave it can't just be carried forward to "next year"
I am still hopeful but realise people are getting sick and dying out there so what will be will be, stay safe out there.

True, but it's better to be stuck at home, wishing you were on the road somewhere, than to be stuck on the road somewhere wishing you were at home.

That's how I see it from my perspective as a Canadian rider who is now stuck in Tunisia for who knows how long.

Have a look at the very first post at the top of this discussion, which I started on February 11 this year. With 20-20 hindsight, I wish I paid more attention to the concern I voiced in the fourth paragraph of that post.

Michael

I turned back from the Mauritanian border about a week ago, figuring crossing might become a point of no return and Morocco would be a better county to be stuck in.
As we know, it escalated very quickly after that; I left my bike (6 months allowed) and chanced on one of the last flights out of Marrakech a couple of days ago.

At the crowded airport I got a sense of privileged tourists fleeing, leaving Morocco to its fate – a scenario we’re familiar with following natural disasters and so on.
’Pray for us’ they said at the Customs office.

Only this time we were heading back to very similar restrictions and possibly greater health risks.
The difference was, most of us were going home.

Is there anyone on the road?
 

Certainly there are many restrictions that apply to flying into airports due to Covid-19, but is anyone having luck crossing borders by land on their motorcycle? I read that Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Albania and North Macedonia are open to US citizens. Is it really impossible to ride into Bulgaria and then on to Turkey whose border is also open?

Currently it is possible to travel, Hungary will close its borders on 1st September, so Tuesday. Ukraine has already closed theirs again.

Bulgaria requires a clear covid test to be shown before allowing entry and Greece requires the same.

Things are tightening up again bit it is still possible to travel, albeit in a slightly more controlled way.

Please do your own research though as the above is liable to change with very little warning.

I am currently in Slovakia, I will be heading back into Hungary on Monday to avoid the border closures and then heading down towards Bulgaria through either Romania or Serbia and then through Greece into Turkey, then the fun begins with Iran and Pakistan! It's a case of checking news daily.

Good luck

Bulgaria doesn't require a covid test certificate at the moment.

Yes, you're correct, I was getting mixed up, been looking at the status of too many borders this week!

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Today Hungary has closed its borders.
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I’m supposed to be off to Spain at the end of September, we are hoping that the vintage bike rally we are going on will happen or that Spain closes its borders to people from the U.K.

Transit along the motorway across Hungary IS still possible

Sorry .. only in german.

But maybe interesting for your travel plans. 2 articles from public television in Switzerland and Germany. Take a translator of your choice:


source: SRF - Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen
is the branch of the Swiss radio and television company SRG SSR in German-speaking Switzerland.

digital identify
https://www.srf.ch/kultur/gesellscha...e-ueberwachung

source: Südwestrundfunk - Anstalt des öffentlichen Rechts (public german tv)
How is that supposed to work? One example is the Known Traveler Digital Identity project, or KTDI for short (digital identity of the known traveler), which is intended to enable travel without papers.
https://www.swr.de/swr2/wissen/digit...11-03-100.html


Will this come with the introduction of the digital vaccination card?

From a brief read it seems to contain a lot more of your information than a passport which I would be uncomfortable automatically sharing with others. I appreciate people at border control are entitled to ask whatever they see fit before allowing you entry to their country but it would also allow other such as the police to access information they currently require a search warrant to see, my initial reaction is count me out until I understand more about how much of my information I can withhold or decline to share.
I do however think people will and should be required to show proof of covid vaccine when entering another country for the forseeable future, but this does not need to be in this form.

I don`t think that this will happen together with digital vaccine verification. There are too many barriers in law worldwide existing (especially in Germany where a new chancellor will be voted this year!) that will prevent a regulation in the near future like the think tank in link illustrate.

In terms of my planing I was interested about how a fraud resistant vaccine verification could look like and function. Since last year I am checking here:

https://www.adalovelaceinstitute.org...d-status-apps/

It shows an overview what kind of thinking and action is going on in different countries.

I think that once people realise that they require a vaccine certificate to travel to Spain or Greece for their 2 weeks of sun, then the demand for such certificates will be so great that any considerations of privacy will be dropped.

There is plenty of previous history supporting vaccine certificates, some countries still require a proof of Yellow Fever vaccination, Smallpox certificates were very coo only required before the disease was eradicated by Vaccination.

I don’t really see what the fuss Is about, many countries I wouldn’t wish to travel to without making sure that my Hepatitis/Polio/tetanus shots were up to date. I need a Passport to travel and a driving license to drive......what’s so difficult about a vaccine certificate