Coronavirus update March 2020: for now, we “keep calm and carry on”

With all the Coronavirus craziness going on in the world right now, we feel it’s important to have an open and honest conversation with our customers. So, here’s a blog post to update you on how we at Go Cotswolds plan to approach the coming weeks and months. We hope you find it reassuring!

For now, it is our thinking that:

if we still have customers who want to come on our tours, and
if there is no official Government advice that would prevent us from operating our tours, and
if we (Tom and I, and our guides and drivers) are healthy and happy to continue our tours, then…

… we will “keep calm and carry on.”

What has the UK Government advised?

In a speech made yesterday (12th March 2020), UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that:

Anyone who experiences symptoms of possible coronavirus should self-isolate for 7 days and seek medical help only if symptoms worsen and medical treatment is required.
There are no restrictions on domestic travel, or mass gatherings of people, and no school closures – although these strategies have not been ruled out further down the line.
“Social distancing” is not yet being recommended for the general population – only if you have, or think you have Coronavirus, in which case you should self-isolate as above.

With this in mind, we at Go Cotswolds see no reason to cancel our tours, or to temporarily close our business, at present. Of course, if official advice changes, if our team members are unable to work, or indeed if all our customers cancel and we have no tours to run, then we will communicate a revised approach.

Will you cancel my Go Cotswolds tour?

As stated above, we intend to continue our tours for the time being – and if you have booked a tour, we really look forward to meeting you! It has always been our company policy to operate any tour with bookings, even if we only have one passenger! So rest assured, if you have booked a tour with us, we won’t cancel it simply because we have low numbers of passengers. We may, however, be forced to cancel tours if, for example, the Government advises us to, or if our guides are unable to work. We really hope this situation won’t arise, but if it does, we will notify and refund all affected customers.

What is Go Cotswolds doing to keep us safe on a tour?

The most important thing we can all do right now is to pay extra attention to our personal hygiene. So, taking the latest official NHS advice into account:

Please do not come on a Go Cotswolds tour if you have, or think you may have Coronavirus. Symptoms are a high temperature and/or a continuous cough. If you experience either of these symptoms, please notify us and stay at home for 7 days until you get better. Likewise, our team members will do the same.
We will be washing our hands thoroughly, for at least 20 seconds, and washing them more often. We advise you to do the same. Hand sanitising gel will be available on our minibuses if required, but soap and water is fine, and this is widely available at public conveniences along our tour route.
We will ensure that all surfaces on our minibuses are thoroughly cleaned before and after a tour.

I want to cancel my Go Cotswolds tour – what should I do?

If you have booked a tour with us and decide – for any reason – that you wish to cancel, no problem. In line with our terms and conditions, we offer a full refund, less a £3 per person cancellation fee, if you notify us at least 48 hours before the start of your booked tour. If you plan to reschedule your tour for a later date, we can also hold your funds and transfer your booking to any date in the future, subject to availability. If you don’t yet know which date you’d like to book, no problem. We’ll give you a coupon code to redeem on our website to book a future tour at your convenience. There is no fee or penalty for doing this, and since we anticipate a small annual price increase in January 2021, you may save a few pounds too. If anything changes, we will be sure to let you know. Until then, we wish everyone well and pray for this all to blow over soon!