OBSOLETE COVID THREAD Covid test requirements - Santiago to Dublin via london

[Mhcamino]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

 

[SioCamino]

Hi an alternative might be to check out flights from Porto - its an easy bus trip from Santiago and Ryanair flies direct to Dublin. I recently booked flights with Ryanair and IIRC there are no change fees just now (at least to the end of this month???).
Hope it works out for you.

 

[Mhcamino]

Thanks for getting back to me. I have my flights booked. Do you mean I can change my flights free of charge?

 

[SioCamino]

I think you would need to check with Ryanair but when i booked a flight last week it said that changes were free of charge if booked before end September.... Now the devil is always in the detail with Ryanair.... Worth investigating anyway

 

[Vacajoe]

As of Sep 15, 2021, anyone on a flight into the UK requires a negative Covid test, regardless of whether that is their end destination or simply transiting. You won’t have to purchase a Day 2 test, though.

 

[henrythedog]

You need a test and you need to be negative.

Scroll down here:

[Withdrawn] Travel to England from another country – COVID-19 rules

Check if there are any COVID-19 rules in place for travel to England from abroad.

www.gov.uk

 

[Corned Beef]

the end of October

Apparently the England rules will be changing again with the changes announced on 1st October.

[Insert something political here about the "trolley"]

 

[Mhcamino]

Thanks so much for replying. My outgoing flight has now been cancelled to Santiago. It's turning out to be a mess. Definitely most difficult camino trip i've organised. I'm afraid to book Aer Lingus again but I'm thinking of flying to Madrid and then getting the train to Sarria

 

[Corned Beef]

The train to Sarria from Madrid goes through Ourense (Sanabres).

You might want to consider that as an alternative, though accommodation on the route looks a bit sparse.

 

[Vince Rollason]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

Hi,
I am travelling from Birmingham, England to Santiago next week then by train to Ferrol to walk Camino Ingles. I need to change planes in Frankfurt to fly on to Santiago and am not leaving the airport. I am flying with Lufthansa and the one test covers me. Hope this helps.
Buen Camino
Vince

 

[Gearóid]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

My goodness, my Aer Lingus return flight from Santiago to Dublin at end of October was also cancelled today …. I’m awaiting confirmation of how they have rebooked me.
I’m considering taking a train or bus to Porto and flying Ryanair direct to Dublin.
What I don’t know is how regular and uncomplicated bus/trains from Santiago to Porto are??……. Perhaps someone can pass onto us the benefit of their experience in this regard…… thanks in advance. Gerard

 

[Vacajoe]

Use Rome2Rio to check bus/train connections on your specific travel date. We did a 4 1/2 bus by ALSA, but I know there are FLIX busses as well as train combos, too.

 

[Gearóid]

Use Rome2Rio to check bus/train connections on your specific travel date. We did a 4 1/2 bus by ALSA, but I know there are FLIX busses as well as train combos, too.

Really kind of you …… thank you .

 

[Copas]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

Hi Aer Lingus have also cancelled their flight to Dublin on October 27th.

 

[Gearóid]

Hi Aer Lingus have also cancelled their flight to Dublin on October 27th.

Aer Lingus have cancelled all flights from Santiago to Dublin from October 11th to October 30th……. The adventure has begun .

 

[brendano]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

I had the same problem several years ago. I got the bus from the bus station in Santiago; buy your bus ticket there ( 20 minute walk from the cathedral to the bus station) to Porto and stayed in a hostel in Porto for two nights. The first day I got the bus to Fatima and had a wonderful day; I always wanted to visit Fatima since I was a child. The flight from Porto back to Dublin is about the same as flying from Santiago. Anyway's , Slainte!

 

[Gearóid]

I had the same problem several years ago. I got the bus from the bus station in Santiago; buy your bus ticket there ( 20 minute walk from the cathedral to the bus station) to Porto and stayed in a hostel in Porto for two nights. The first day I got the bus to Fatima and had a wonderful day; I always wanted to visit Fatima since I was a child. The flight from Porto back to Dublin is about the same as flying from Santiago. Anyway's , Slainte!

Great advice …. go raibh maith agat!

 

[henrythedog]

Thanks so much for replying. My outgoing flight has now been cancelled to Santiago. It's turning out to be a mess. Definitely most difficult camino trip i've organised. I'm afraid to book Aer Lingus again but I'm thinking of flying to Madrid and then getting the train to Sarria

Fly to Madrid. Keep it simple. Good luck.

 

[henrythedog]

Hi,
I am travelling from Birmingham, England to Santiago next week then by train to Ferrol to walk Camino Ingles. I need to change planes in Frankfurt to fly on to Santiago and am not leaving the airport. I am flying with Lufthansa and the one test covers me. Hope this helps.
Buen Camino
Vince

Dear God, that’s complicated. Did you consider flying to Madrid and taking the train to Ferrol or A Coruna?

 

[Copas]

Aer Lingus have cancelled all flights from Santiago to Dublin from October 11th to October 30th……. The adventure has begun .

Any suggestions on how get to Dublin, after arriving in Sarria on October 26th? We have a few days to spare so Dublin on the 27th and 28th!!!! Hope someone can help.

 

[Mhcamino]

I hope you were all able to sort flights home. My outgoing flight was cancelled then rebooked for the next day. I'm not sure what Aer Lingus are doing. As we spent 3 times the price on our Ryanair return flights via Stansted we are going to stick with the dates and walk Sarria to Santiago in 4 days. We might get a taxi 10km on the very long day

 

[Mhcamino]

Aer Lingus have cancelled all flights from Santiago to Dublin from October 11th to October 30th……. The adventure has begun .

Yea it's strange how they cancelled returning flights but rebooked outgoing ones. Do they not know ppl need to get home

 

[Marcus-UK]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

There used to be a direct Santiago to Dublin flight from Air Lingus have you checked there web site?

 

[Mhcamino]

There used to be a direct Santiago to Dublin flight from Air Lingus have you checked there web site?

I had that booked but it was cancelled so unfortunately had to rebook through Stansted with Ryanair.

 

[Ber71]

My goodness, my Aer Lingus return flight from Santiago to Dublin at end of October was also cancelled today …. I’m awaiting confirmation of how they have rebooked me.
I’m considering taking a train or bus to Porto and flying Ryanair direct to Dublin.
What I don’t know is how regular and uncomplicated bus/trains from Santiago to Porto are??……. Perhaps someone can pass onto us the benefit of their experience in this regard…… thanks in advance. Gerard

Hi what date are you flying. We are flying by Aer lingus on the 23rd Oct. We were supposed to be flying the day before but they changed it

 

[Mhcamino]

Hi what date are you flying. We are flying by Aer lingus on the 23rd Oct. We were supposed to be flying the day before but they changed it

We are the same outgoing changed from Friday to Saturday. Have you worked out how you will get to Sarria? Bus times arent looking too good so I think we will have to get a taxi

 

[Ber71]

We are the same outgoing changed from Friday to Saturday. Have you worked out how you will get to Sarria? Bus times arent looking too good so I think we will have to get a taxi

Yes we have taxi arranged. Im just praying that flights won't get changed again . Really looking forward to it now.

 

[Mhcamino]

Oh I hope not who did you book the taxi through? My accomodation is offering a taxi service for €130 but just wondering did you find somewhere cheaper

 

[Ber71]

Oh I hope not who did you book the taxi through? My accomodation is offering a taxi service for €130 but just wondering did you find somewhere cheaper

Ours was 120 so not much difference. That's for 2 of us

 

[Former member 49149]

I hope someone can help me with this. My returning flight with Ryanair from Santiago to Dublin the end of October has been cancelled today due to scheduling changes (I only booked it on Sunday). I couldn't change the date so I booked Ryanair flights to Stansted and from there to Dublin. They were twice the price and now I am worried we will have to present a covid test even though we won't be leaving the airport. We are full vaccinated. Has anyone any advise/wisdom/experience on this matter? I would really appreciate help

In the middle of the replies there are a couple referring to changes in rules to get into UK, having been in Spain. That applies to me. I am in Spain. In order to get into UK, I had to book a PCR test, get it sent to a niece in London, and after much worrying, chose to change my flight out of UK so I would be gone withiin 24 hours and not have to take the test. I could not complete the passenger location form to get into UK without the series number or whatever of the PCR test.
If I had chosen to stay 2 nights I would have had to worry about taking the test, getting it checked, getting the result... no thanks. I am down a fair amount of money, and my niece can raffle the test if she wants. I will be well home in Dublin and never think of travelling to UK via Spain again. Ever.

 

[Mhcamino]

Ours was 120 so not much difference. That's for 2 of us

Can you PM me the details of your taxi company as I'm not sure if mine will come through

 

[Mhcamino]

In the middle of the replies there are a couple referring to changes in rules to get into UK, having been in Spain. That applies to me. I am in Spain. In order to get into UK, I had to book a PCR test, get it sent to a niece in London, and after much worrying, chose to change my flight out of UK so I would be gone withiin 24 hours and not have to take the test. I could not complete the passenger location form to get into UK without the series number or whatever of the PCR test.
If I had chosen to stay 2 nights I would have had to worry about taking the test, getting it checked, getting the result... no thanks. I am down a fair amount of money, and my niece can raffle the test if she wants. I will be well home in Dublin and never think of travelling to UK via Spain again. Ever.

So you are ok transferring through the UK without getting the PCR test?

 

[Former member 49149]

So you are ok transferring through the UK without getting the PCR test?

Yes. The documentation states clearly that if you are in the country not more than 24 hours you do not need to take the test, but yes, you have to buy it and write the number when looking for your Passenger location paper, also required to get your boarding card - I think. I will be more sure tomorrow after `I sit down to do it at 6.20pm.

 

[Mhcamino]

Yes. The documentation states clearly that if you are in the country not more than 24 hours you do not need to take the test, but yes, you have to buy it and write the number when looking for your Passenger location paper, also required to get your boarding card - I think. I will be more sure tomorrow after `I sit down to do it at 6.20pm.

That's crazy you have to buy it if you are nothing going to use it. Please let me know how you get on

 

[Former member 49149]

That's crazy you have to buy it if you are nothing going to use it. Please let me know how you get on

I will certainly update you. It is crazy, I had forgotten how furious I was till I saw your message!!! I did hear though, that to appease UK citizens going on. Mid term holidays, the rules will be eased again, so don't lose hope... sorry, the last piece is not fact, but I did read it in the Irish Times, so it must be true!!!

 

[henrythedog]

I will certainly update you. It is crazy, I had forgotten how furious I was till I saw your message!!! I did hear though, that to appease UK citizens going on. Mid term holidays, the rules will be eased again, so don't lose hope... sorry, the last piece is not fact, but I did read it in the Irish Times, so it must be true!!!

It has just been announced that returning to the UK from a non-red-list country from October 24 will require only the pre-booking of a lateral-flow test, not a PCR test.

Having recently returned and gone through the ‘Day 2’ PCR process I found that the passenger locator form and the PCR test activation website required a few items of potentially cross-referenced data. Given that the UK systems don’t link passport, border control and NHS data; I think it’s unlikely that the data is actually cross-checked; but ‘they’ clearly want to give that impression.

 

[Former member 49149]

I spent a lot of time and energy trying to conform to the rules. I was unable to get a boarding card, based on the UK passenger locator form information, no matter how hard I tried. It took a very generous young airport agent in Bilbao airport an hour to painstakingly fill out a new application for me, and even then she had to use an exemption that was not true, but it allowed my form to get three green ticks, and that led me to get my boarding card. Sounds short and sweet. It was not. And after all that - correct. Nobody looked at it even sideways. I am now ready to go home to Dublin. I had time to go to a bar not too far away where it was possible to buy her a bottle of wine, to thank her. That was at least something I was able to do easily!
Re-reading your question: if you can honestly - or dishonestly - say you are transiting airside, you will have no problem at all.

 

[Mhcamino]

I spent a lot of time and energy trying to conform to the rules. I was unable to get a boarding card, based on the UK passenger locator form information, no matter how hard I tried. It took a very generous young airport agent in Bilbao airport an hour to painstakingly fill out a new application for me, and even then she had to use an exemption that was not true, but it allowed my form to get three green ticks, and that led me to get my boarding card. Sounds short and sweet. It was not. And after all that - correct. Nobody looked at it even sideways. I am now ready to go home to Dublin. I had time to go to a bar not too far away where it was possible to buy her a bottle of wine, to thank her. That was at least something I was able to do easily!
Re-reading your question: if you can honestly - or dishonestly - say you are transiting airside, you will have no problem at all.

That is absolutely crazy I can't believe it takes that much effort when we aren't even staying in London only passing through

 

[Former member 49149]

That is absolutely crazy I can't believe it takes that much effort when we aren't even staying in London only passing through

It might not take that much effort, for you. I think each situation has to be taken in its own context. There are UK Govt regulations. I followed them. Trying to do what was asked. And do you know how much heed was paid to any of those hard won papers? Take the prize. Zero attention.
The Irish DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs) still has real people answering phones and helping anxious callers. You might want to check out this page and see if it takes you to a phone number...

Travel Advice - Department of Foreign Affairs

Our travel advice helps you to make informed decisions when you’re planning a trip overseas.

www.dfa.ie

a couple of people who are not so anxious as I am have sailed through by telling wee white lies. That might be of interest to you! Good luck.

 

[Former member 49149]

As henrythedog correctly wrote above, from 24th, only a lateral flow test is required. You should not even need that, transiting airside.

[Withdrawn] Travel to England from another country – COVID-19 rules

Check if there are any COVID-19 rules in place for travel to England from abroad.

www.gov.uk

The link above, which I have just read again, is actually clear. Read down to the line transiting through England, tap it, then it is absolutely clear as airside passengers you should be exempt from tests. You have probably done this already, but I wanted to try to alleviate your anxiety level, if in fact you are still anxious. If I knew then what I know now! Do report back...