Because I still have some slight hope of getting to Essen…
Can someone who’s done it recently tell me what European internal land borders are like at the moment? I normally arrive in France then drive through Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany. Is each place going to want (its own special variant of) vaccine paperwork, with consequent queues etc.? Or does each country assume that if you were allowed to travel in the previous one you’re probably allowed to travel here?
(The EU has set up vaccination certificate reciprocity arrangements with every country that’s asked. The UK and the USA haven’t asked.)
As far as I know there are no border controls in the areas you mention. My dad is currently in France with my sister and said nothing about it and we visited a friend in Luxembourg in the Summer and there was no control at the border. I think there are no more border closures around here.
It is assumed that if you got in you have your paperwork. You will have to provide paperwork at the hotel if you stay at one.
I will not be at SPIEL. I am mad they canceled the outdoor festivals in summer which have way fewer visitors than a normal SPIEL has. I think it is not a good idea with Delta surging… the tests for unvaccinated people are not sufficient a friend of mine who is a doctor just told me today.
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I’m still havering (and as you suggested the rules may change post Federal elections anyway) but I want to have all the information just in case. Thanks!
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The rules here currently feel like they want to go back to very little restrictions for vaccinated and those who have already had the virus. F.e. They have completely overhauled the rules for quarantines in schools where there is basically no quarantine even if a kid in the class has covid (there is a special focus on schools however).
There is talk of having stricter measures for the unvaccinated adults but the situation seems rather fluid and the election is almost a month away…
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As @yashima said there are no special border controls to speak of, at least not that I know of.
If you’re fully vaccinated you don’t need to go into quarantine, the NHS app should work.
We were in France on holiday, and the only time we needed our vaccination confirmations was when we went out to restaurants.
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I’m currently down to about 10-15% likelihood of Essening. My general health is pretty good but I really don’t want to bring a dose home to my wife.
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I don’t know if you know but if you go to Spiel you HAVE to buy your ticket online, you have to bring ID matching the ticket and you have to have a digital EU vaccination code. It says international visitors must take care to convert whatever they have into the EU thing to get in.
Sadly they will admit people who have only had anti-gen tests and my friend–who is a doctor–just told me the other day those just aren’t good enough especially with the 48 hour timeframe to prevent what happened at that festival in the Netherlands where they had 1000 infections.
With the Delta surge as it is… and as much as the beautiful fall weather right now reminds me how great it would be to be going to Spiel in October… and it really is a sad thing to be missing it for the second year but I cannot in good conscience expose our friends who we normally stay with (a 70+ yo couple) or my partner just because I feel like playing some games. I could go by train in the morning and return at night for 1 day. But … Spiel is not that for me. Meh.
But some publishers f.e. Feuerland act as if we’re back to business as usual (“our big new game will be available for preorder to pick up at Essen the rest of you will have to wait until Christmas”). On the other hand 2F games had to cancel their appearance because they rely on volunteers and they didn’t want to expose them… which also means they cannot participate in Spiel.Digital because only publishers with booths get to do that. Just great.
edit: Spiel really puts me in a grumbly, ranty mood these days.
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Yeah, I’ve been keeping track and I’m very grudgingly approaching your point of view.
(Goes off to cancel hotel room.)
Darn it, I’m going to have my own Essen! With hookers! And blackjack!
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There is still a chance that things will change drastically and only vaccinated people will be admitted after all… but that would require some very very very (repeat ad infinitum) unlikely political mind-changing and or a big upset at election time (that is not going to happen)
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Even then, it’s less than ideal simply from the number of people. Rather than sit here being tense until the last moment, I’ve committed myself now to staying away.
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I think I may invite some people over for a boardgame night or two during that week-end. I have all the new games that I acquired over the last N (let N be too large) months.
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Hmm… Having visitors smoking on hookahs probably constitutes a potential covid transmission vector, unless you’re extremely thorough about scrubbing out the entire device with disinfectant after each use, and… oh, you meant hookers? Yeah, that’s, uh… That’s a different type of infections. 
Also, if you’re starting your own British Essen (Bressen?), one would hope there might be more games on offer than just blackjack. 
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It’s a Futurama reference (1x02 “The Series Has Landed”).
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