Jab 3 coming to a clinic near you shortly (my daughter gets hers this week), so I wonder whether part of the hoarding has been in anticipation of this going ahead. I have wondered whether there's a foreign aid budget analogy element to this, where the vaccines have been used - like money usually is - as a political influence stick to beat people with.

As for vaccine 'refuseniks', my sympathy gene seems to have run the whole gamut over the last year or so from 'they don't understand' through 'we need to convince them' to 'on their own heads be it'. I had a friend in the US email me a few days ago and mention that his next door neighbour's live at home son has just caught it. Both parents are unvaccinated by choice and all three of them are now quarantined together at home. It'll be interesting to see how that one works out. On the other hand, one of my wife's medical partners has just caught it as well and is confined to her house. She's double vaccinated and (so far anyway) isn't that ill with it. Because the practice is so overwhelmed with work she's still having to take patient referrals by phone / zoom while trying to recover.

I suspect that there is a large element of retention for the third jab going on - they have been talking of the booster jab publicly for some time so behind closed doors for longer than that. However, there should be sufficient to start to deliver on the promises. .

__________________
You will have to do without pocket handkerchiefs, and a great many other things, before we reach our journey's end, Bilbo Baggins. You were born to the rolling hills and little rivers of the Shire, but home is now behind you. The world is ahead.

As this thread is supposed to be about travel ON A MOTORCYCLE during these times I thought that I might make an on topic contribution.

Unlike most of the people who have contributed to this thread I have actually recently traveled in Europe (about a month ago) on a motorcycle and can therefore provide factual information.

During August 2021 I traveled from Poland to Spain via Germany and France.

Despite the false and or inaccurate media stories about restricted borders, COVID test requirements, vaccination proof etc. etc. I can state the following FACTS.

There were no border checks OF ANY KIND at any of the borders of the above mentioned countries.

I stopped in service stations in all four countries and bought petrol without the need to show any proof of vaccination or otherwise.

I took overnight accommodation in all four countries without the need to show any proof of vaccination or otherwise.

I sat in cafes and bars in all four countries without the need to show any proof of vaccination or otherwise.

I hope this information is helpful.

A bit late now, but on-topic:

If you have a Janssen vaccine (1-shot) it's best not to ride a motorbike afterwards for a good long time - I waited the prescribed 15 mins to see if I might keel over, yet felt fine. But then on the way home (only about 25kms) I started to feel dizzy and by the time I arrived I really wasn't safe to be on a bike.

As for travel restrictions, Spain doesn't have a "covid passport" in effect within it's borders (it was ruled unconstitutional) so once you're here that's it. My understanding is that in France they may restrict nightclubs and other things where crowding may happen.

I came back from France about 10 days ago and while I can't comment on cross border checks within the EU as I didn't do any, my experience in France was not quite the same. Getting into France from the UK only needed an 'honesty declaration' - a form you filled in on line saying that you didn't have Covid. French passport control at Dover wanted to see it (not trusting my phone I had a paper copy).

Hotels / supermarkets /motorway services etc were not bothered about Covid status - you could book them / walk in and out etc and nobody was bothered - as long as you were wearing a mask. I was 'reminded' a couple of times when I was browsing in some smaller shops and forgot to put a mask on. Cafes and restaurants however wanted to see your French covid passport before they'd let you in. No UK stuff worked on their system and no QR code on your phone meant no entry. I didn't find a single cafe that didn't insist on the code before letting you in, and as I didn't have one it meant no leisurely lunches etc The only exceptions were restaurants in hotels you were staying in - breakfast mostly.

Coming back to the UK needed a test done within two days of your arrival at Calais. Finding a test centre locally (near Grenoble) wasn't hard with a couple of them operating a no appointment needed, just walk in, schedule but the test I used came with me from the UK. You buy it in advance, take it with you and email the company to make a Zoom style call on your phone at a suitable time. They then watch you taking the test in real time, and you hold the test strip up to the camera so they can see if it's positive or negative. If you pass they email you the cert. That worked perfectly via 4G on my phone (much to my surprise!)

You need the cert to fill in the passenger locator form, something that only have been devised by a bureaucrat with too much time on his hands. It assumes you're only visiting the UK and wants (amongst other things) to know when you're leaving. The on line version won't take nonsense answers either so it took a while to find made up answers it would accept. Trying to fill it in came close to causing me to miss the ferry. Much to my surprise it wasn't immigration that wanted to see it but the ferry co. Presumably they get fined if you don't do it.

I never heard anything from track and trace - the form is supposed to put you on their radar, but I was talking to someone a few days ago who had also come back from a euro bike trip at about the same time. He got home late in the evening and had someone from track and trace banging on his door at 7.00am the next morning. He was told where to stick his form in very short order

Back from Spain, Andorra and France a few days ago.

Arrival in Spain, no covid checks, I guess because its done before you board the ferry in the UK. No controls crossing in or out of Andorra or into France.

In France I had to show my covid passport at some places but not everywhere, it was a bit hit and miss. Get the French COVID app and upload you vaccination cert, its much easier to use than the UK one, which like the Passenger Locator form has been designed by an imbecile.

Coming back to the UK was interesting, I didn't have a ferry booked. You can't book a Day 2 test without a flight number or ferry name, you cant fill in a passenger locator form without your day 2 test booked. The staff at Dieppe ferry terminal wouldn't sell me a ticket without a negative test and a completed Passenger locator form . I could however book the same ferry online with no paperwork.

Had a slight hiccup when I got me pre travel test results as the DOB was wrong, but quickly corrected by the people who did the test.

Of course if you have booked your return travel before leaving the UK and take a Antigen test with you its more straight forward

I have just traveled by road from Spain to Poland (January 2022)

No checks at any borders.

Only problem that I encountered was when I went in to Italy and reached the city of Parma, both the hotel that I had booked and a nearby McDonald's would not allow me to stay in their respective establishments without a "Green Pass".

I decided not to find out if the rest of the country was going to be like this so I decided to take my wallet elsewhere and left Italy by the fastest possible route.

Austria and Slovakia were only open for transiting which I did but there was no one at any border or any other place on the roads checking anything.