Trapped in g.a

[ian-steele]

Just wondered how many People ar?e tr??apped here In g.a unable to get a flight back to UK, we have been awaiting a flight back since April 3rd have booked +, rebooked 3 times in April + may but eas,yJet have cancelled them 3 days before the flight, we came here for 1 month holiday to our apartment 1st march just before the virus was spreading. .very worried we will never get home again....Ian & Irene. 3.2g urb

[John H]

I had quite a few mates who flew back wc 16th March, they hadn't planned to,but they could see the writing on the wall.

Of the ones I know that are still there they seem to quite happy and enjoying getting the sun in their gardens and solariums. They are having a few delivered meals a week, joining in with Facebook and Zoom concerts and generally making the best of it, non seem eager to come home!!

Stay safe

John

[Spurs]

There are definitely worse places to be stuck

[lesandtony]

Hi,   
Been here since 16 Jan should have returned 27th March.  All cancelled of course.  Got to return sometime for operation which has been cancelled 3 times . The only possibility is Vueling , Alicante to Barcelona ,  Barcelona to Heathrow BA .  Will only be doing that if there is a dire emergency though.    Some friends have car hired and driven to Gibralter for BA flight to Heathrow arrived back in UK yesterday no problems.  Ok if you live down south but nightmare if you live north of Watford gap with trains at all times of the day or night .  Just keep enjoying painting and inventing jobs in the sun

[Ash]

I assume that anybody who is in GA at present made a conscious decision to do so
I flew back to GA on the 15th of March knowing that I would be here for the foreseeable future.

But if I had wanted to return to the U.K. after that there was approximately 4/5 days of flights from Alicante and various Spanish airports back to the U.K. and I know that there were certainly seats on them available

So there should be no one here who does not want to be here

With regard to future flights the earliest that Easyjet has flights available is May 18th

[ian-steele]

Ash I am not here because I want to be, I had pre-booked flights with easyJet out on 1st march return on April 3rd, so expected to return back. There were 3 resue flights on 31st march to Gatwick, but my wife needs wheelchair assistance so did not want to be stranded in London 200 miles from home I have booked an easyJet flight  on may 18th but don't have any confidence that it will go.  Ok

[gaveteran]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_the_2019%E2%80%9320_coronavirus_pandemic_in_March_2020#1_March March 1st when you arrived, expecting to stay for a month and fly home without being inconvenienced. You could always hire a car and illegally drive it to Gibraltar and help spread the thing around?

[wilson]

We were out in February and I recall watching on tv events unfolding around the world, the couple on the cruise ship in Japan giving hourly updates, the super spreader who went skiing in France and then went to Brighton. Prior to leaving on Feb 20th I remember saying goodbye to our Spanish neighbours who didn’t seem overly informed or concerned about the looming pandemic neither did a local bar owner when I said it was unlikely we would be back this year, he seemed quite surprised also. Whilst I’m certainly no pandemic expert I do follow history and world events, I was in Hong Kong in 2003 during Sars and remember it was serious stuff in Asia. So why did so many people still think it a good idea in March to go on holiday, who knows maybe they listened to they’re Facebook friends or even some forum members who couldn’t see what all the fuss was about. I certainly wouldn’t be using taxpayers money to charter planes for anyone who left the uk after late Feb to go on holiday.

[sunseekers]

Apparently there are limited flights to and from spain as i know a resident who just managed to return a few days ago and is now isolating at home because he has travelled here. He came via heathrow to barcelona and then on to alicante, i believe the reverse is possible if anyone is desperate to return and of course should isolate on return if they do this

[Blue and white stripes]

I feel exactly the opposite - trapped in the UK. I can't wait to get back out to Spain. Ryanair are selling flights from 18th May onwards but I think this is just a ploy to get your money and you will be offered the opportunity to move them to a later date again. Both Ryanair and Jet2 are suggesting 18th June as a date when flights can restart.
I do feel guilty worrying about lack flights when 20000+ people have died in the UK.

[Ash]

Ash I am not here because I want to be, I had pre-booked flights with easyJet out on 1st march return on April 3rd, so expected to return back. There were 3 resue flights on 31st march to Gatwick, but my wife needs wheelchair assistance so did not want to be stranded in London 200 miles from home I have booked an easyJet flight  on may 18th but don't have any confidence that it will go.  Ok

Ian there were various flights/rescue flights that went to various U.K. destinations before the 31st March and there were certainly spaces on these flights so am unsure why you waited until the end of March for a flight.

[John H]

As I noted earlier Ash, a lot of our friends bought flights to fly back to the UK WC 16th March because they could see the writing on the wall.

Regards all

John

[Derek]

On the 23rd of March the Foreign Office advised all British Travellers to return to the UK. Unfortunately if you miss a bus you have to wait for the next one.

I had a flight booked for the 17th March but could see the writing clearly on the wall so decided early March to stay at home. The reason I cancelled was the fear of not getting back. I know many others cancelled planned trips just to play safe. I know these comments do not help but I am sure transport will start moving again in May or June and in the mean time just enjoy the weather because here in the UK you would also be just stuck at home.

Derek

[Ash]

Looks like there is a way out of GA if any one needs it

Just looked at Alicante Airport and Tui are flying to and from the U.K. every Tuesday
I am at a loss at who would be travelling

They also fly to Gatwick on a Saturday

[Blue and white stripes]

At the moment, the earliest you can book from the UK to Alicante with TUI is 13th June. Once you get to the airport you won't be allowed out unless you have a green residency certificate.