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thanks, that was interesting.  Your are right - I wonder why the Irish authorities bother checking PCR results on arrival, when there is clearly a multinational understanding that the departing authorities (in this case the Guardia Civil) will not let you board the ferry without negative a test report with 72 hours validity for arrival time. 

A similar report from a France to Ireland would be very good too, if there is anyone reading this and willing to do one.

OK, i have done some research on this, including a couple of calls to labs offering PCR tests in Brittany, - and have pretty much answered my own question, but it may have relevance for anyone planning to go to France in the summer with unvaccinated children. 

The labs generally can provide a result within 48hrs in slightly above 90% of cases.  Quite often it will be available the next day, but you cannot depend on it.  If they have symptomatic local cases, they will take priority and they will not guarantee they wil do your test on the day you book, but they reckon that should be rare by summer.  Last summer the French government supported local labs to be set up in areas of mass tourism, to add capacity for travellers.  No one knows if that will happen again in 2021.

If you get a test done at the last possible moment (to give yourself the best chance of having a valid result by the time your arrrive at an Irish port), your margin for error is approximately 6 hours.  i.e. if the ferry were 6 hours late, according to current rules you would not be allowed to disembark.  If you get your test done a little too early, this erodes into the safety margin.  Flights do not have a problem really (2 - 4 hours flying time increase your safety margin from receiving your PCR result to arriving in Ireland by several hours).

This issue has not been road-tested yet, and probably few people are aware of it, because non-essential France-Ireland travel has not occured under these rules.  Basically unless the Irish authorities change their stance, there is no practical way that I can see for Irish families (with unvaccinated children) to travel by ferry to France this summer.  The problem is only on the return journey.  A change in the rule to a negative test 72hours within embarcation, rather than within 72hours at time of arrival, would be enough to greatly facilitate things.


 

True, but the problem is on the return journey from France.  On the way out it is fine - the french authorities accept a PCR test done 72 hours before departure from Ireland.  This is very feasible.  But for the return journey, the Irish authorities seem to want a PCR test with 72hours of arrival into Ireland.  That is completely different.  The sailing time is important for the France-Ireland leg but not the Ireland-France leg.  Has anyone actually succeeded in getting a PCR test in France (48 hours waiting time) and sailing to Ireland (18) hours sailing time) with the test still valid?     

Hello,
I am wondering if anyone has practical experience of this problem.  According to government rules, a negative PCR is required 72hours before entering Ireland.  However, most labs will need at least 24 and sometimes 48 hours before getting a result.  With a sailing time on the France-Ireland ferry routes of 18 hours approx, there is almost no margin of comfort.  I was planning to bring the family to France this summer, (the kids will probably not have been vaccinated), but I don't see how anyone to overcome this issue.  Any ideas?
Kevin

I'm not so sure.  What if they simply cannot offer alternative sailings?  As we get into July all the return IF sailings will be full.  Did they organise and pay for your IF sailing back to Ireland?

further study of this situation seems to reveal that if you cancel, then you get a travel voucher as a refund (minus your deposit).  You decision to cancel might then depend at least partly on your enthusiasm for travelling to France again sometime in the future.  If they cancel the sailing completely then I presume they refund you fully in cash.  I don't know how long these 'travel vouchers' lasts for.

Hi Claregirl, I am in much the same boat and have been agonising over this for the past couple of days.  I am undecided.  It would be nice to get a positive sign from BF on their website (e.g 'our repairs are going well and we are optimistic of return to sailing by mid June'), but so far nothing.

  As far I know, at this stage out from your journey BF will refund your ticket minus the deposit (so you would lose about 1/4 of what you paid).  Also, sailing with IF on the WBYeats will cost a fair amount more than current booking (at least it does for me), so your outlay in this maneuvre will be substantial (for me, with a car and 4 passengers it came to approx. 400 lost on the deposit plus an other 350 on the increment in the IF price, so 750 euro extra on a return sailing that had cost about 1500.

If BF wanted to show some good will they would be more generous with their refund for June sailings, given the current uncertainty, but they are French so I suspect you will get the gallic shrug (you won't see it over the phone).  I would have serious doubts about the June 14 expected return to sailings - it is more or less two weeks from their breakdown so probably the shipyard just said "maybe we can do it in a fortnight", however I am only guessing.

If they ultimately cancel the late June sailings as seems likely, they will have to give everyone a full refund.  My thinking is that I can then get my accomodation costs back on my insurance and I will then cut my losses for the summer by getting some flights to somewhere in Europe for a week to keep the family happy.

It depends on your gamblers instinct and your wallet!