Travelling in a post-COVID world: your questions answered

Yes, absolutely. Travelling in a small group is one of the safest and most secure ways to travel. Explore’s groups average just twelve people – small enough to get right into the destinations we’re visiting, but big enough that you’re bound to be travelling with some likeminded individuals.  

For those that prefer to travel just with close family or a friendship group, our programme of private tours, exclusive group trips and self-guided holidays will be popular in 2021 as it enables people to remain within their existing bubbles. 

It’s likely that, from 2021, some countries, airlines and tours will require evidence of COVID-19 vaccination before you travel. At the moment it’s not a requirement of our tours, nor of travel insurance providers, but some destinations already require a recent negative COVID test, or even a live test on arrival. As the vaccination is rolled out, it’s likely that having proven immunity will replace some of this testing. Together with our partners and tour leaders on the ground, we are keeping very close to this as it develops and will update customers as things change.

We also recommend that you follow the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advice for travel to your chosen destination, and sign up for their updates.

Explore continued to offer refunds where requested throughout 2020 for cancelled and rearranged trips. We are lucky to be a small company that is part of a bigger organisation, and so we are in a position to be able to continue providing security for trips booked with us. We were recognised by the consumer champion Which? for doing the right thing by our customers – something that has been a driving principle of Explore for 40 years – and we stand by these values. 

New insurance policies have been created by the travel industry to include COVID-19 related claims, increasing customer confidence and – along with rapid testing now available at airports, and our COVID-19 refund promise – travellers can book trips in confidence that, should they not be able to travel or need to return early, they are protected.  

Our recommended travel insurance provider Campbell Irvine offers policies that include cover for COVID-19. 

Travel is unlikely to be as it was for some time – cities and famous sites will be less crowded, the skies will be less busy and people are more likely to opt for greener holidays. We’ve seen demand for walking and cycling holidays spike. While the tourism industry has suffered greatly, it has forced us all to slow down and appreciate the huge privilege that travel is. Travel is likely to become more conscious – people taking fewer, longer trips rather than lots of short breaks. They’ll be more appreciative of the places and the people they meet and less impulsive with last-minute trips and spending. 

Explore’s sustainability strategy is at the very heart of the company. Doing the right thing is a driving principle of Explore, and we strive to build back better. At the start of 2020 we launched a carbon offsetting programme that meant all of our trips are now carbon neutral. We also used a (hopefully!) once-in-a-lifetime opportunity when no groups were travelling to further develop our sustainability strategy and write a new Animal Protection Policy.