Showing posts with label terrorism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label terrorism. Show all posts

Monday, 29 May 2017

Should I cancel my UK holiday in light of recent terrorism?


Terrorist levels in the UK raised to critical levels now by Government.

A question I see a lot from bloggers is 'should I cancel my holiday to xxxxxxx? after an attack in another country. Maybe we should be re thinking the sensitivities as to asking those types of questions.

The media reports that I got locally about the Manchester bomb last week varied little from how the UK reports on terrorist bombs abroad, they focus on their own people over there.

I'm travelling to the UK next month, should I cancel my travel plans?

What advice would you give someone who posted that question?

How does someone posting that question while the situation is still ongoing make you feel about your country?

It would be much more beneficial in future if we asked these types of questions to the right people, rather than people who have no real idea of what a country is like, other than they've had a holiday there.

Do ever get an idea of what a country is really like, what the people are like from a 2-3 week visit?

Holidays are not real life, a tourist resort does not represent a country, its people, a way of life. You know that. Most British people are never more than a 2 hour drive, maximum from a holiday resort and even closer to tourist destinations. You know the misconceptions people have about the north if they're from the south or the opinions of city folk v country folk. Why make those assumptions about another country?

After the attacks in Turkey and Tunisia, people were posting these questions about whether it was safe to go there for their holidays. They were offered to rebook their flights and accommodation to go to other resorts and even other countries. People were flown home early. 
Is this the current case for people who are holidaying in the UK? Are other countries warning against travel there? I can't find anything other than general information on local websites here, but I have found this information from the British government. (May 24th 2017 9am UK time)

Credible information indicates terrorist groups continue plotting possible near-term attacks in Europe. All European countries remain potentially vulnerable to attacks from transnational terrorist organisations. 
This year we've travelled to Egypt and Hong Kong. My husband has also travelled to Saudi and Pakistan with work. Last year I was in Germany and South Africa, there was an attack near Munich when I was there, not terrorism, but that wasn't known at the time. We get asked all the time about our personal safety, especially in regards to flying back to Dubai. But we never get asked about our travel plans to the UK. Do we feel safe? No one ever asks us to reconsider our UK trips, like they do when we travel to other countries. Why is this? 

I of course won't be cancelling my plans to fly to the UK in 3 weeks time. I'm flying via Istanbul with Turkish Airlines, I've already travelled this route since the new restrictions with hand luggage. I expect security to have been tightened even further since the end of March.







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