Yay (or EEK?)

Bad_azz

Well-Known Member
Charter Member
Cager
Joined
Jul 16, 2016
Messages
3,747
Finally I am planning to visit UK with hubby after around 8 years of marriage.
I keep opening the visa application website, freaking out at all the documentation and so on they want, then closing it again & putting it off.
I am running out of time and I have to put on my big girl panties soon and get this thing tackled.
(Eek!?)
Then another country gets put on the travel watch list re CoViD19 so I think, shall I delay the trip or not?
Oh so much to think about. I guess I will close the website again & go have a cuppa.

Anyone got any hints tips tricks advice for me re all of the above?
The work part is the awkward bit as he is a freelance musician, hardly known for being documented work here.
 
People without steady income, as freelancers and musicians, always have most difficulties obtaining an Schengen and UK visa. Proving return and financial means can be an issue, even with accomodation arranged and guarantee statements. Obviously he has property so that helps.

Difficult to say what will happen at the end of this year, when the negotiations with the EU must be finalized. Will there be more scrutiny to get a UK visa?

Not sure what a Corona might do; one week everything is fine but next Indonesia might be on a blacklist as Iran or so when they find out there have been many more cases and it's not under control.

NB: airlines as KLM offer possibilities to reschedule in case of flight cancellations.
 
Last edited:
I have a daughter had been planning to visit UK, Germany and Spain in April. At the moment I am not sure that the real danger is the virus as such but being caught up at a stop somewhere with screening and quarantining if you have a cough or sniffle.

On Balipod a Canadian posted details of his plan to relocate to Bali later in the year with two small children.

I posted this response: "Just a cautionary note. Between now and your Fall the Corona virus may have made a profound difference to any travel plans and it is impossible to predict which way it will go.. If you are making advance bookings it might be prudent not to just go for the cheapest fare but tickets which can be redeemed if cancelled or have the dates changed. With any transit stops there is the increasing likelihood that temperature testing may be done so that any sniffle or cough might find you in quarantine somewhere. Sorry to be a wet blanket but the situation is very fluid and I think will change considerably between now and September."

And just two days ago, watching midday news and a passenger getting off a flight in Israel only to find that they had overnight required quarantining of people from her country.

I have put off travel plans as I think with the rapid changes in the worldwide status of the virus there are increasing chances of getting caught up by suddenly introduced regulations here or there
https://balipod.com/forum/threads/greetings.13121/post-122809
 
I have a daughter had been planning to visit UK, Germany and Spain in April. At the moment I am not sure that the real danger is the virus as such but being caught up at a stop somewhere with screening and quarantining if you have a cough or sniffle.

On Balipod a Canadian posted details of his plan to relocate to Bali later in the year with two small children.

I posted this response: "Just a cautionary note. Between now and your Fall the Corona virus may have made a profound difference to any travel plans and it is impossible to predict which way it will go.. If you are making advance bookings it might be prudent not to just go for the cheapest fare but tickets which can be redeemed if cancelled or have the dates changed. With any transit stops there is the increasing likelihood that temperature testing may be done so that any sniffle or cough might find you in quarantine somewhere. Sorry to be a wet blanket but the situation is very fluid and I think will change considerably between now and September."

And just two days ago, watching midday news and a passenger getting off a flight in Israel only to find that they had overnight required quarantining of people from her country.

I have put off travel plans as I think with the rapid changes in the worldwide status of the virus there are increasing chances of getting caught up by suddenly introduced regulations here or there
https://balipod.com/forum/threads/greetings.13121/post-122809
Yes, those are precisely my concerns.
 
People without steady income, as freelancers and musicians, always have most difficulties obtaining an Schengen and UK visa. Proving return and financial means can be an issue, even with accomodation arranged and guarantee statements. Obviously he has property so that helps.

Difficult to say what will happen at the end of this year, when the negotiations with the EU must be finalized. Will there be more scrutiny to get a UK visa?

Not sure what a Corona might do; one week everything is fine but next Indonesia might be on a blacklist as Iran or so when they find out there have been many more cases and it's not under control.

NB: airlines as KLM offer possibilities to reschedule in case of flight cancellations.
Yes, almost impossible- Perhaps I should list him as a house husband & provide my financials for them- they will likely want those anyway.
At this precise moment in time I am tempted to go there alone & just pop over to some other country for a holiday with him hmm NZ or Aus perhaps :)
 
I have a trip back booked at the end of March and I'm 99% sure I will have to postpone until November. Looks like the UK is about to get as bad as Italy, and by April it might not even be possible to get back into Indonesia having been there. And that's before even considering the transfer in Abu Dhabi where they may also have new rules.
 
We have 2 weeks hollliday in April. Still uncertain where we'll go.
Initial plan was Ireland but had to drop because of visa requirements.
Looking into Georgia or Serbia or probably visit isle the Skye or Uzbek for the third.
We'll wait and see on last minute.
 
I would postpone all non-essential travel, especially when travelling with kids/family/elderly. There is just too much uncertainty right now. A flight could get cancelled, or entry from certain countries denied, etc, etc.

For example, Qatar just announced bans of arrivals from 11 countries this morning, incl Thailand and Philippines. Not sure if they also ban transits, but probably. That would be ugly, as Qatar is a decent sized hub for flights between SEA and Europe.

I expect these types of travel bans are going to be more and more common soon, and the implementation will be without warning.

 
^ No, transits are still safe. But the stop-over program is canceled.

Qatar Airways publishes the status on their website:


Under the direction of government authorities of the State of Qatar, as a preventive measure to limit the spread of Coronavirus, entry to Qatar is temporarily suspended for all those travelling from the following countries: Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Syria and Thailand. Only those with onward connections through Hamad International Airport are accepted for travel.

In relation to passengers travelling from Italy, only those with onward connections through Hamad International Airport are accepted for travel. Qatari nationals and those who are in possession of a Qatar Residency Permit are exempted from the above-mentioned decision, however these passengers will be asked to stay in a quarantine facility for 14 days as per the World Health Organization’s measures.

All passengers arriving from Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore will be screened and those displaying disease symptoms will be taken for further testing. Passengers returning positive test results will be admitted to treatment centres as per the measures of the Ministry of Public Health.

In line with the circular from the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) concerning preventing the spread of Coronavirus, Qatar Airways is prohibited from carrying all passengers from Egypt* via any intermediate point(s), including those who are in possession of a Qatar Residency Permit. Qatari nationals are exempted from the above-mentioned decision, however will be asked to stay in a quarantine facility for 14 days as per the World Health Organization’s measures.

* @Wisnu ?
 
^ No, transits are still safe. But the stop-over program is canceled.

Qatar Airways publishes the status on their website:


Under the direction of government authorities of the State of Qatar, as a preventive measure to limit the spread of Coronavirus, entry to Qatar is temporarily suspended for all those travelling from the following countries: Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Syria and Thailand. Only those with onward connections through Hamad International Airport are accepted for travel.

In relation to passengers travelling from Italy, only those with onward connections through Hamad International Airport are accepted for travel. Qatari nationals and those who are in possession of a Qatar Residency Permit are exempted from the above-mentioned decision, however these passengers will be asked to stay in a quarantine facility for 14 days as per the World Health Organization’s measures.

All passengers arriving from Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore will be screened and those displaying disease symptoms will be taken for further testing. Passengers returning positive test results will be admitted to treatment centres as per the measures of the Ministry of Public Health.

In line with the circular from the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) concerning preventing the spread of Coronavirus, Qatar Airways is prohibited from carrying all passengers from Egypt* via any intermediate point(s), including those who are in possession of a Qatar Residency Permit. Qatari nationals are exempted from the above-mentioned decision, however will be asked to stay in a quarantine facility for 14 days as per the World Health Organization’s measures.

* @Wisnu ?

No Qatar airways operation in Egypt, no direct flight, no plan to visit Qatar, so no biggie.
It's nothing to do with Covid 19.
Even here, we can't access Al Jazeera without vpn

Indeed, there's lot of uncertainty for traveling abroad.
And I do have some concern with security procedures in airport here. Yesterday, I was traveling to site with chartered flight from Cairo airport. The security still perform manual body check to everybody.
Didn't know how many people he touched before me, could be hundreds or thousands. I didn't see liquid disinfectant for them.
 
No solutions for you, but a helluva lot of sympathy.

Badazz said:
I keep opening the visa application website, freaking out at all the documentation and so on they want, then closing it again & putting it off.
I am running out of time and I have to put on my big girl panties soon and get this thing tackled.
That sounds like me and my paperwork for things like taxes, bill paying, insurance, car registration, blah blah blah. I keep looking for my big girl panties, but I think I left them in the wash, or something?

Badazz said:
The work part is the awkward bit as he is a freelance musician,
Many years ago I accompanied my gamelan teacher - an amazing musician - to help him apply for a visa to travel to the US. He actually had a position waiting for him as a visiting scholar at Tufts University.

To this day I am ashamed of how he was treated by the staff of the US embassy. I will never forget the clerk saying, contemptuously and incredulously, "you are a musician? How will you earn money in the US?"

That was all said in English, and I had to translate for my teacher. It was embarrassing.
 
Sorry guys only just got my laptop online.
I have been watching/monitoring the whole COVID-19 thing and as of yet I have not even bothered to re-open the visa website, as far as I am concerned I am not going to visit my elderly parents until this thing has run its course. If we pick something up along the way/ or already have it & transfer to my folks resulting in them getting seriously ill, I would not forgive myself.
I have banned them from even visiting my brother at the moment as he has kids in school & we all know kids are germ factories ;)
 
Yeah the elderly are the group at risk. I don't think my parents would survive a double pneumonia either.
 
Other half and I were supposed to travel to Norway early April but we're no longer making the trip now as we do not wish to put ourselves at risk of being stranded with fast-changing circumstances. I think it's wise to postpone any travels until COVID-19 blows over as government around the world respond to it.
 
Last edited:
Luckily practically all airlines (e.g. Qatar, Singapore, Lufthansa, KLM, ...) have very flexible (temporarily free) rebooking solutions in place. And you can wait up to three days before the trip and reschedule or even request a voucher that is valid between 6 months and 1 year.

But I would not travel for the next 6 weeks no.
 
Finally I am planning to visit UK with hubby after around 8 years of marriage.
I keep opening the visa application website, freaking out at all the documentation and so on they want, then closing it again & putting it off.
I am running out of time and I have to put on my big girl panties soon and get this thing tackled.
(Eek!?)
Then another country gets put on the travel watch list re CoViD19 so I think, shall I delay the trip or not?
Oh so much to think about. I guess I will close the website again & go have a cuppa.

Anyone got any hints tips tricks advice for me re all of the above?
The work part is the awkward bit as he is a freelance musician, hardly known for being documented work here.
I would at the very least book a flight that allows last minute cancellations with full refund (if thats even possible) besides incurring a small admin fee or the ability to reschedule up to a year out. Traveling during this time is a crap shoot. My son had already purchased a ticket from U.S.A. to Spain in July, then after a stop in Egypt would meet up with us in Bali the latter part of July. He says he already payed for trip leg to Spain and trip leg from Bali back to U.S.A. We are hoping and betting that if the current situation continues into the summer that he can get a full refund. Only time will tell. i would wait until the very last moment and bite the big on a higher fare if need be to insure travel is feasable on your date of departure. You are already doing the right thing in planning prudently. I wish you the best. ☺
 
Last edited:
I would at the very least book a flight that allows last minute cancellations with full refund (if thats even possible) besides incurring a small admin fee or the ability to reschedule up to a year out. Traveling during this time is a crap shoot. My son had already purchased a ticket from U.S.A. to Spain in July, then after a stop in Egypt would meet up with us in Bali the latter part of July. He says he already payed for trip leg to Spain and trip leg from Bali back to U.S.A. We are hoping and betting that if the current situation continues into the summer that he can get a full refund. Only time will tell. i would wait until the very last moment and bite the big on a higher fare if need be to insure travel is feasable on your date of departure. You are already doing the right thing in planning prudently. I wish you the best. ☺
My original post was back on 6th March a lot has happened/ changed since then...we ditched all plans for at least a year.
I would not even consider visiting my elderly parents at this time as I would not wish to add to the risk factor for them.
Thank you for the good wishes.
 
Have you delayed yet? You should
I ditched the idea a while back - it was fairly easy to see how the whole COVID 19 thing would pan out once it started spreading out of China.
Or at least to me it was, perhaps I have read too many dystopian novels.
 
Good decision. If just one of the passengers in the same plane is infected, your chance of catching it increases exponentially.
 

Users who viewed this discussion (Total:0)

Follow Us

Latest Expat Indo Articles

Latest Tweets by Expat Indo

Latest Activity

New posts Latest threads

Online Now

Newest Members

Forum Statistics

Threads
5,966
Messages
97,385
Members
3,035
Latest member
Les 819
Back
Top Bottom