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Is it too early to turn the heating on?! Summer in Yorkshire certainly feels a distant memory ever since our return from Kefalonia on Tuesday.
The purpose of this blog is to give reassurance to those travellers still feeling uncertain about travelling abroad this year. We have to admit, we felt just as anxious as any other traveller on our outbound journey wondering whether we had the right paperwork, vaccination certificates, and negative test results etc. The paperwork is indeed a minefield of tick boxes but when you are armed with the right ammunition and guided by The Travel Journal the world really is your oyster, as long of course, you are travelling to a green or amber destination!
On the subject of green and amber, there is no difference between the 2 colours now for fully vaccinated travellers (final dose needs to be at least 14 days old at time of departure.)
It was apparent that the airport process on departure from Manchester was a longer process than normal due to the checking of documentation but queue's can be avoided with the help of speedy boarding and security fast track etc.
Our 'test to return' was self administered whilst in resort 3 days before we flew back to the UK and certification was instant via email/app in preparation for our flight home.
Check-in at Kefalonia on the return was indeed a doddle and a fraction of the time required on the outbound in the UK. The process through passport control on arrival back in Manchester was comparable to pre-pandemic times with just a standard passport inspection, it was in fact quicker than pre-covid despite the fact numerous flights all arrived at the same time and passenger numbers were surprisingly higher than we anticipated.
The UK media certainly have a lot to answer for, and as for the horror stories we have all been reading this summer relating to holidays abroad...well...it seriously makes us think the UK government have been on a smear campaign to try and scare everyone into staycation's here this summer in order to make Mr Sunak's balance sheets look more favourable?!
Our conclusion is just do it! If you miss the feel of the sand between your toes, the warmth of the sun on your back, the buzz of the local nightlife, the joy of experiencing new cultures and learning new languages, then let's talk travel, and let's all fall in love with travelling again. September and October are still great month's for a last minute escape to the Med or mid-haul destinations and tropical shores further afield await during our dark/ cold winter months.
Our experience was such a doddle, so much so, we are currently re-packing the suitcases and heading off to Malta tomorrow evening for the weekend, after all, we have a lot of travelling to make up for...Valletta blog coming next week! ha-ha.