Light at the end of the tunnel - Sailing is back ON!
Wednesday, 27th May 2020Coronavirus has postponed the start of the sailing season in Europe, but happier times are on their way as border restrictions are eased.
It’s been a nervous, worrying and frustrating few months: the season would normally start in March, but the national and international restrictions to stem the Coronavirus pandemic has meant that instead of helping people get out on the water, our team have been busy helping them postpone or cancel their dream holidays.
In a number of instances, the holidays were to celebrate honeymoons or anniversaries, which makes it doubly disappointing to have to switch dates or change plans.
But thankfully, contagion rates are dropping across Europe, travel regulations and lockdown conditions are being relaxed, and we’ll see a return to some form of normality (albeit one which involves facemasks) very soon. All our operators ahve instigated new cleaning regimes and best practices to ensure that your holiday is a safe and healthy one.
When can I go sailing?
In Croatia, borders will be open for some international travellers from the 30th May 2020. People on sailing holidays are among the first people allowed in, and having a charter booked is a valid reason for getting into the country (we’ll contact you to make sure that you have all the right paperwork ahead of your charter). There’s no longer any self-quarantine requirement.
Italy opens its borders for international travel from the 3rd June 2020 - sailors will be able to breathe the fresh sea air and hop around the coastline or islands.
In Greece, meanwhile, sailing charters will be possible from the 15th June 2020 – but there are travel restrictions in place: you can only enter the country if you are travelling from one of 19 white-listed countries from the 15th June. The rest of Europe – including the UK – will only be able to travel to Greece from the 1st July 2020. No date has yet been set for travel from outside the EU.
France, Turkey, Malta, Montenegro and Spain also expect to open their borders on the 1st July, though it is possible that there will be some form of self-quarantine required.
What about my booking?
If you already have a booking with PlainSailing.com, the most difficult part now is to work out how or if you can get out to your boat – some flights will have been cancelled or rescheduled (or will be), and there are some restrictions (such as the UK requiring all returning travellers to undergo a 14-day quarantine period) which may make it impossible for you to get out to your boat.
If it looks like you won’t be able to make your charter, please contact us as soon as you can – we are able to help postpone your trip to later in the season, or to the 2021 season. Alternatively, it is possible to cancel, but there are usually fairly hefty cancellation fees.
