London-Paris Christmas '21

[Scrapr]

Have a Virgin Atlantic voucher from last year. VA because I want to see the VA lounges in SFO & LHR. I'm very shallow. I think next spring is going to be nuts for travel so hoping to get in before the rush. I think airlines are going to be slow add flights & milk the tourist crowd for Business type fares.

I have alerts set up on Google flights for mid December to first week in January. The voucher is for the approximate amount so that is a wash. I am waiting to pull the trigger until approx June. If the fares bounce then I will have a decision.

It looks as if the EU & England are having more issues than the US on the vaccine getting into arms. I guess a bunch of French are declining the Astro Zenica vaccine. So I may be ready to travel but they may not be ready to have me. I am hoping that if the US is mostly vaccinated then the overflow supply can be redirected to lesser vaccinated countries. Also talk of a pill which would be a game changer too

opinions on my odds of actually making this happen?

*also looking at another trip in the Fall of 2022 but nothing lined out now

 

[njhowie]

Check the terms on the voucher and current VA rules. Most airlines have very good cancellation policies at this time. With a voucher, they may simply reissue the voucher on a cancellation. So, what I'm saying is that there may be no penalty in making the reservation right now. You should contact VA and inquire while the airfare is what you want.

 

[Scrapr]

Check the terms on the voucher and current VA rules. Most airlines have very good cancellation policies at this time. With a voucher, they may simply reissue the voucher on a cancellation. So, what I'm saying is that there may be no penalty in making the reservation right now. You should contact VA and inquire while the airfare is what you want.

Good idea. Had not thought about that.

What I did not relay was that the voucher was for one traveler (me) & now I have a +1 so that would require an outlay of cash

 

[braumeister]

Alas, I won't make any international travel plans until I know for sure I'll be allowed in without a quarantine. Best of luck, though. I got to use that VA lounge in LHR a few years ago and it really is impressive!

 

[goingtotravel]

We also have a travel credit that we were hoping to use to visit Paris in December 2021. At this point France seems to be really lagging behind in getting the population vaccinated and we are thinking 2022 might be more realistic. We may head to the South of France next Spring and that will probably be our first international trip. Hoping to hit the USVI this winter and that will be our first time back on a plane since January 2020.

 

[OldConch]

Spent a couple of hours each in the VA Clubhouse at LHR and Plaza Premium lounge in HK on a VA flight home from Thailand last year. After a month of catamaran and "hike, bike, and kayak" tours, our visits to these lounges were extremely enjoyable experiences during the long flights home. Enjoy!

 

[OldShooter]

Well, I wouldn't consider it unless I was vaccinated. That said, you are asking for predictions of a future that no one knows. Your guess is as good as anyone else's and trying to average a bunch of ignorant opinions isn't productive either. Just go with your gut.

 

[Bamaman]

We had flights cancelled a year ago to Berlin, and a cash refund was finally made 7/2020 to our travel agency/consolidator. They've been sitting on our money ever since--and claim they're paying us this month. Moral of the story: Only buy flights right now directly from the airlines.

The U.K. and certain E.U. countries we wish to visit are still locked up tight for tourism. Until they reopen, we will not make any trip plans. But we continue to save our stimulus checks for whenever we can travel again.

We have no desire to travel to the U.K. until later as their winter weather is just miserable. We usually travel last few days of March and find the Spring has arrived.

 

[brett]

I would not book anything at this point.

No one can tell where this covid issue is going. No one can predict with a scintilla of accuracy.

The very LAST place that I would consider booking to in mid Dec-Jan is London or Paris. Rain, damp weather...awful.

We have been fortunate enough to enjoy numerous airline lounges, including London.

They are very nice. BUT.....I would never tradeoff the enjoyment of a few hours in any of these lounges for the inclement weather in the UK at the time under consideration.

Keep in mind that the various Virgin Airline subs are not in good shape. I believe that one of them has already gone into administration and/or closed shop.

 

[Steeler75]

The VA lounge at SFO is very nice. It has aged well over the last 20 tears since it was first built; still very modern inside with meals prepped on site.

The new UAL Lounge in International Terminal G is by far the new high standard in clubs. So chic, includes myriad services and freshly made foods. Bad part is you have to fly United, or better yet one of their STAR alliance partners (Lufthansa, Singapore, etc.)

 

[Scrapr]

The very LAST place that I would consider booking to in mid Dec-Jan is London or Paris. Rain, damp weather...awful.

I don't suppose you have seen Portland in the Winter. After about 30 or 35 straight days of rain I start rooting for 40 days. Noah & his ark. It's just a matter of having the gear.

Paris is the City of Light & I think it would be extraordinary in Winter

 

[skyking1]

I'd kick that can as far as you can. It is too unclear what the future holds for Europe.

 

[brett]

I don't suppose you have seen Portland in the Winter. After about 30 or 35 straight days of rain I start rooting for 40 days. Noah & his ark. It's just a matter of having the gear.

Paris is the City of Light & I think it would be extraordinary in Winter

As a matter of fact I have. We lived in Vancouver BC for twenty plus years. And spent as many years travelling there on business when we did not live there.

Hence my comments.

 

[Scrapr]

As a matter of fact I have. We lived in Vancouver BC for twenty plus years. And spent as many years travelling there on business when we did not live there.

Hence my comments.

I want to see Paris so badly rain will not be a deterrent. However if cafes are not open for dining that would be a game changer. I think the light off the wet streets could be spectacular. If I wait until it's sunny & 75 degrees it might be with the traveling hordes

 

[Closet_Gamer]

H

It looks as if the EU & England are having more issues than the US on the vaccine getting into arms.

Actually the UK is crushing it on the vaccine front. Ahead of the US, tho both countries continue to pick up speed.

Europe is a mess however.

 

[ivinsfan]

London or Paris? I noticed the +1...does this mean your heart is healing enough for you to enjoy a new companion...


I suspect whenever or wherever you go, it will be a great adventure..


I don't have an issue with traveling off season, but the extremely short days at Christmas time would be a downer for me. not much daylight that far North. It's so much easier to navigate with some daylight. We've done London in mid Feb which gave us more daylight.



Even though the UK is doing well with vaccines they are still locked down tighter then tight...

 

[Scrapr]

London or Paris? I noticed the +1...does this mean your heart is healing enough for you to enjoy a new companion...


I suspect whenever or wherever you go, it will be a great adventure..


I don't have an issue with traveling off season, but the extremely short days at Christmas time would be a downer for me. not much daylight that far North. It's so much easier to navigate with some daylight. We've done London in mid Feb which gave us more daylight.

Even though the UK is doing well with vaccines they are still locked down tighter then tight...

Thank you for noticing the +1. We are moving along in our relationship. And I am living with my grief. My motto is Find the joy.

London is only a stopover to deal with jet lag. A couple days. Stop at a few spots & grab a Eurostar over to Paris. Enough time in Paris to do just 1 activity a day. Slow down & hang out at cafes. Then at 4:30 pm (LOL) walk & look at the lights

Because of the remarks about how dark starts early i looked at a latitude map of Portland vs Paris. Paris is a bit farther north. Portland would be approx in the South of France. Couple hours by train.

https://i.imgur.com/yIe8gWy.jpg

This trip will all depend on how the virus progresses (or not) I suspect airline fares will reflect how travel is or isn't possible. See continued low fares & things probably aren't good. See a pop in fares & it might be time to jump. I think I will put fare alerts for January & February as well as December

 

[braumeister]

Thank you for noticing the +1. We are moving along in our relationship. And I am living with my grief. My motto is Find the joy.

Yes, congratulations on being able to move on with your life!

Because of the remarks about how dark starts early i looked at a latitude map of Portland vs Paris. Paris is a bit farther north. Portland would be approx in the South of France.

Honestly, the time of sunset is the very last thing that would concern me. I've traveled extensively in winter in some of the northernmost places in the world and it never bothered me at all. I actually find the midnight sun to be more disconcerting than the lunchtime moon.

 

[ivinsfan]

Yes, congratulations on being able to move on with your life!


Honestly, the time of sunset is the very last thing that would concern me. I've traveled extensively in winter in some of the northernmost places in the world and it never bothered me at all. I actually find the midnight sun to be more disconcerting than the lunchtime moon.

That certainly would be a personal preference, I'm OK with less daylight but the shortest days of the year wouldn't be my first choice if I could avoid that. In winter it can get pretty damp and chilly as soon as it gets dark.


It's not a deal breaker, just something to think about. But I'm completely in agreement about the midnight sun..

 

[Popsicletoes]

I think thanksgiving is a much more pleasant time to fly to Europe than Christmas. Less crowd on the plane because nobody celebrates thanksgiving but Americans and we’re too busy eating turkey at home. The Christmas decorations will already be up everywhere by then so you can enjoy it, do window shopping (or real shopping), but without the Christmas shoppers around you. Weather is also slightly better.

We always flew to London the week of thanksgiving - it’s our favorite time to go to that part of the world. Hotels are cheaper too. We flew VA a few times and the plane was usually barely 50% full. We were in Paris on thanksgiving day a couple of years ago and it was cloudy in the low 60s during the day. I think walking along the river Seine in such weather is beautiful, not to mention way more pleasant than walking around in the heat of summer! Rain doesn’t bother us since it’s just light drizzle or mist - similar to Seattle weather. Just wear your thin rain jacket with a hood and you’re good.

We can’t wait to go back but we’re waiting until Oct before finalizing any plan. I’m hoping there’s not another Covid surge when the colder weather sets in.

 

[ivinsfan]

We've done London in early-mid November and a few times in mid to late Feb.



Generally prefer Feb for a couple reasons. It can be somewhat Spring like and the daylight is a little longer.

 

[Scrapr]

Got a little shock yesterday. I have our dates saved in Google flights with alerts. I gotta message that the fare changed. I looked and it went from $2500 to $3500. In the evening I checked again and it was back down to $2500. I suspect they were price testing. Will probably pull the trigger pretty quickly. I was thinking about waiting until end of June to see how Europe reopens (or not) But Virgin Atlantic is very flexible on changing dates. You can change dates until March of 2023 iirc. So not much downside