It's the end of the test as we know it. Or so we are told ...

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [View in browser]( [The Independent]( [Travel] Simon Calder’s Travel Week [Simon Calder]( Written by Simon Calder | December 10, 2021 By the time a dozen passengers and their baggage had been removed from Monday night’s British Airways flight from St Lucia to Gatwick, the Boeing 777 was well over an hour late. So while my train from London reached the Sussex airport on time, the purpose of the journey had dwindled. I had planned to meet the first passengers scheduled to arrive in the UK after [the latest tightening of travel restrictions]( took effect. The law changed at 4am on Tuesday: everyone arriving since then is required to have a pre-departure test for travel to the UK. BA2158 from the Caribbean idyll was due to be the first arrival; in its absence that honour was shared between travellers on the Pride of Kent ferry from Calais to Dover and Virgin Atlantic’s flight from Hong Kong to Heathrow. They respectively tied up and touched down at 4.38am. Just before 6am, [the first British Airways passenger from St Lucia]( – Lysa Hardy – emerged from arrivals at Gatwick and summed up the scenes at the Caribbean airport in one word: “Chaotic.” Welcome to Gatwick: since 4am on Tuesday. all international arrivals to the UK need a pre-departure test Most passengers due to return on the flight had been on the island when three tough new hurdles were introduced for their journey back: booking a PCR test for after their arrival; self-isolating until receiving a negative result; and, in the latest crucial twist, undergoing a pre-departure test. The disqualified dozen had mistakenly concluded that the law did not apply to them: not because they were politicians, but because they assumed the new rule applied to departures, not arrivals, after 4am. So they had not taken the required tests. At the charming but under-resourced Hewanorra airport, there was no chance to get the necessary procedure in time. British Airways could not take a chance and fly them anyway, because the airline could face a huge fine. They were left behind. Now, you can probably think of worse places to be stranded than St Lucia, but the abandoned 12 presumably faced high costs to extend their stays (which travel insurance will not cover) as well as disarray for their December plans. Stranded in paradise: the Caribbean island of St Lucia I do not imagine the UK government set out to create maximum hassle and minimum confidence for travellers. But its rapidly changing, incoherent and irrational rule changes do exactly that. Not far from the Gatwick arrivals hall, travellers from southern Africa are paying a fortune for the misery of [hotel quarantine](. They are incarcerated ostensibly to protect the rest of us from the omicron variant of coronavirus, which is already spreading like wildfire within the UK. So I was delighted to hear [the health secretary, Sajid Javid, tell Parliament](: “Very soon, in the days and weeks that lie ahead, if, as I think is likely, we see many more infections and this variant becomes the dominant variant, there will be less need to have any kind of travel restrictions at all.” As I write on Friday morning, it is almost 24 hours since I asked the Department of Health for more details about when travellers might be set free. Like the meeters and greeters at Gatwick arrivals, I am watching and waiting. Destination of the week: Egypt My kind of quarantine: the Nile at Aswan Life for anyone stuck in hotel quarantine is dismal: paying up to £2,285 per person for 11 nights of incarceration. Yet there are easier and cheaper options for travellers from the 11 African nations on the UK government's red list. They can fly, legally and responsibly, to Cairo and enjoy an 11-night holiday in Egypt – visiting the Pyramids, taking a Nile cruise or enjoying the Red Sea beaches. Starting from the UK, too, fares are low in the very near future: flying out tomorrow from Manchester to Sharm El Sheikh for a week, easyJet wants just £175 return for over 5,000 miles of air travel. Tell us what you are planning for your next break Perhaps you could kindly [complete this short survey]( to let me and the team know your travel plans for 2022. It takes less than three minutes and will help us shape the future of this newsletter. [TAKE OUR SURVEY]( Don’t miss my daily travel podcast [Green List Travel]( For all the latest travel tips, advice and news analysis, listen to ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available from Monday to Friday for free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](. Deal of the week: Manchester-London by rail From Sunday, Avanti West Coast will reinstate the full complement of services between Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston. During the coronavirus pandemic, the normal three trains per hour have been cut to two. With demand for rail barely at 60 per cent of pre-pandemic levels nationwide, the West Coast main line train operator is cutting fares to fill the extra capacity. For travellers who are flexible about timing and who book around five days ahead, one-way tickets for £30.80 are easy to find – reduced to £20.30 for railcard holders. In standard premium, which comprises first class seating without the complimentary catering, the corresponding fares are £55.80 and £36.80. Travel voucher of the week [Voucher]( [Extra 10% off for Black Friday with our Viator promo code]( Travel question of the week: Self-isolation rules Q When I return from Spain, I understand I must take a PCR test. But can I circulate, meet people and go shopping before I take that test, then isolate until I get the result? A No. Everyone coming back into the UK must self-isolate immediately they return home, which means getting food and other essentials sent in. You can leave isolation only when you get a negative result to that PCR test. Stories you might like [Testing times: your questions on the latest travel changes answered by Simon Calder]( [Testing times: your questions on the latest travel changes answered by Simon Calder]( [The best hotels in Newcastle]( The best hotels in Newcastle]( More stories [Go-Ahead admits to ‘serious errors’ over running of Southeastern trains]( Go-Ahead admits to ‘serious errors’ over running of Southeastern trains]( [FTSE cools on Omicron fears]( FTSE cools on Omicron fears]( Other newsletters you might like [Brexit and Beyond] Brexit and Beyond Every Thurday, 7am (UK time) Written by Adam Forrest [Join now >]( [Voices Dispatches] Voices Dispatches Every Saturday, 7am (UK time) Written by Victoria Richards [Join now >]( Let me know your thoughts on Twitter [@SimonCalder](. If you can spare a minute we’d love your [feedback]( on our newsletters. [The Independent]( Join the conversation or follow us [Facebook]( [Twitter]( Please do not reply directly to this email. 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