Covid-19: Do not visit holiday homes, camp sites, caravan parks says UK Government

UK Government has urged the public not to visit holiday homes, camp sites, caravan parks as the country battles to slow the spread of the coronavirus.

New guidance from UK Government published on Sunday evening states: “Essential travel does not include visits to second homes, camp sites, caravan parks or similar, whether for isolation purposes or holidays. People should remain in their primary residence.

Not taking these steps puts additional pressure on communities and services that are already at risk.”

Anglesey Council Leader, Councillor Llinos Medi, urged tourists and visitors to stay away from the Island until the Coronavirus crisis is over.

UK and Welsh Government, and Public Health Wales, guidance in respect of social isolation and minimising all but non-essential travel must be followed by everyone.

Cllr Llinos Medi said, “This is a message I never thought I would have to give, but in these unprecedented times, I have no other option but to urge visitors and tourists, including those who own second homes, to stay away from the Island with immediate effect.

We must all play our part, and void all but essential travel, to tackle this national emergency.”

Welsh Government’s tourism agency, Visit Wales posted on social media asking tourists to “Visit Wales later” and to avoid all unnecessary travel.

Visit Wales. Later.
Please do not visit Wales at this time and avoid all unnecessary travel within Wales. Following these guidelines will save lives.
We look forward to welcoming you back in future; but for now, let’s all #staysafe.https://t.co/O69WEI1ye6 pic.twitter.com/C8ra39f54r

— Visit Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 (@visitwales) March 22, 2020

During a press conference at Downing Street on Sunday, Boris Johnson issued a warning that he was prepared to order a UK-wide lockdown unless people start following strict measures aimed at slowing down the spread of coronavirus. 

He said: “As I have said throughout this process, we will keep the implementation of these measures under constant review and, yes of course, we will bring forward further measures if we think that is necessary.”

Wales First Minister Mark Drakeford said:

“Self-isolation for those who have symptoms and social distancing by everyone is absolutely essential at this stage if we are to delay the spread of this virus and save lives.

We all need to follow this advice now to protect each other and our families and to help ensure our NHS is not overwhelmed.

Social distancing includes avoiding all but essential travel and if people don’t follow this advice we will have no choice but to use powers to enforce it.”

Snowdonia National Park experienced its busiest ever visitor day in ‘living memory’ on Saturday despite Covid-19 self-isolation measures being in place.

Only 24 hours after the Prime Minister issued tighter measures to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus, Snowdonia National Park was packed the visitors. 

A scene repeated across many parks and tourist hot spots across the UK.

The National Park Authority called on the government to institute clearer guidance and measures in order to ensure that the spread of the virus is slowed.

There’s been a fierce backlash on social media following the influx of visitors into North Wales.