UKH

Ladies, Gents,

Having booked a trip out to Spain over the Christmas break some weeks ago, a new regulation came in wherein a traveller would need to:

"On arrival, travellers entering Spain from the UK will not be required to self-isolate. However, from 23 November, all passengers (including children) travelling to Spanish airports and ports from ‘risk’ countries ..... [UK is currently on the list]........, as determined by the European Centre for Disease Prevention & Control will be required to present a negative PCR (swab) test taken within no more than 72 hours prior to arrival, in order to enter the country. "

The problem that I am faced with is in regards to the final sentence - the 72hrs prior to arrival [in Spain], though other factors also come into play which I will expand on.

Working backwards the test validity has a finite and limited window upon arrival in Spain. Meaning one has to allow for the flight duration, and guessing here too time zone before leaving. It also states that a test must be a PCR test - these tests, at current, are arduously long in the turn around time (if one can even get one I should add....). There is currently, from what I have read, no room for discussion on any other testing metric, meaning a PCR is the standard. 

This all equates to a situation where there is high probability where having a test, sending this PCR off to the lab, gaining the result via courier services (granted this needs to be negative I dont shy away from), flying, and time zone differential all within a 72 hour window seems destined to fail - too many links in the chain and possibility of 'being lost in the post' or 'lost in the system' with sheer amounts of testing capacity required presently. 

Has any kind folk experienced this, or going through the same rigmarole currently? If so HELP!

Mucho gracias 

The main issue you are going to face is that the NHS will simply refuse flat out to give you a PCR test for travel reason.

There are places available to get the test done privately. Unfortunately they are far and few between, usually fully booked, and you can expect to pay anywhere between 150 and 300 pounds per test - with no guarantee of getting the results in the time window.

I empathise, it's a tough one. I went through this thought process prior to booking a trip to Egypt and in the end, the 72 hour window put me off. You have the additional bad luck of having already booked the trip; at least I was able to rationally decide that for the sake of my holiday it wasn't worth the grief/stress/anxiety (I decided that having to take a test on a Wednesday afternoon and pay extra to have it couriered to the lab, for a Saturday flight, would leave me sleepless at night and distracted through the day). 
 

I went to Skye instead. Camping. At the end of October. It rained a lot  

This as well. When I was looking, friends had said that if you book a slot at specific clinics and turn up in person, the turnaround could be "instant" or at least very quick, but for me this entailed a trip to London or Leeds (basically a day off) with very tight time windows on the sparsely available slots. 

But it's all personal - for me, MY trip to Egypt wasn't worth it, it wasn't something I'd planned ages ago and been looking forward to. A different kind of trip or a stronger requirement to travel somewhere, I might have gone through with it all. 

I did have a browse and have found that the cheapest test within 2 days is £134. Though having all eggs in one basket and external factors to the testing company could have a dramatic effect on the whole trip - foreseeing a probability, like you say, that the testing company does not supply in time, or even the test comes back invalid.

Foolish in hindsight though I checked the FCO which I would have thought would have stressed the looming requirements.

Assume is a dangerous word, costly in my predicament, and as once told assumption leads to making an 'ass [of] u [&] me - specifically ME in this context (doh!)

However,

If PCR could be dropped (probability unknown) and say lateral flow adopted there may be room to manage this in terms of time and price for testing.

I have flights booked and the thought of gaining any money from Ryan Air 'zilch' (though, this, is in all honesty is not their problem I admit), I think the only options are either:

a) the UK changes from high risk to lower and then the requirement would be dropped, or

b) cheaper and quicker forms of testing are agreed - lateral flow

Just remember it is a Spanish requirement so FCO advice will be irrelevant anyway.

So UK Gov has little sway.

I had to do this to return to Saudi from France in October. The lab I used (quite reasonable at only 73 euros) emailed me the result within 6 hours. I could then print off the PCR certificate to present on arrival in Riyadh. The time limit for Saudi is a test within 72 hours of take off on the final leg of the journey - easily manageable for me at the time.

Vitox in London will get you a result in 24 hours for a mere 250 of your British pounds if you turn up in person!!!! Maybe add a day out in London to your itinerary. There was talk of a lab being created in Heathrow too.

Munich airport you just turn up 6hrs earlier, they test at the airport and mail you the certificate.

I recently had a PCR test in Leeds, £150, plenty of spare slots. I booked at 0930 for 1100 and got my results ot 0200 via email.