Any recent Covid experiences in France?

I know a few who had COVID recently.

However, with people who travel internationally it's a virtual gimme that they caught it on the plane.

Are friends all feel they got Covid while flying. Seems like masks alone aren’t really protective.

Seems like masks alone aren’t really protective.

They never have been.

Covid cases are on the upswing everywhere at the moment. It is not just travelers that get it.

This forum is not for discussing the merits of one type of protocol over another. I encourage people who have had recent Covid experiences in France to answer the OPs question and allow this thread to continue.

Don't be so sensitive Carol. It was the OP who brought up masks and their merits.

Everyone I know who went to Europe last year came home with that particular souvenir. Including me and my travel partner, and we enjoyed it so much we had it twice!

As long as you don't get sick while you're there, you should just build that expectation into your return. As in, don't expect to immediately go back to work or visit the grandkids until you've tested your little heart out.

I spent 3-1/2 months in Norway, Sweden, Finland, England and northern Italy last summer and remained healthy. Partly luck, I would guess, plus N95 masks and apparently a decent immune system. However, a few weeks after returning home I got a bad cold, probably at the hairdresser's where I couldn't keep my N95 mask on. That certainly could have ended up being COVID instead of a cold.

A friend joined me for the last 4-1/2 weeks of the trip. She remained COVID-free, too. We're both over 70, and we flew in coach to Europe, from London to Bologna and then home from Venice.

We have travelled twice with success not getting Covid. We didn’t eat inside and used well fitted N95 masks when on transit, in airports, and in shops. The problem with drawing conclusions about the protectiveness of masks is knowing type used and how rigorously as there can be much variability. We flew Business Class and took our masks off briefly to eat and drink when the plane was in the air and thus the HEPA air filter system would be working.

Not France, but we travelled to both Spain and Scotland last year and didn’t get Covid. We did get it when we went to Florida however.

I traveled to Paris and Normandy June 2022, and London and Scotland January 2022. Planes to and from, and trains while there. No health issues there or after returning. Hardly saw any masks in either country, or en route.

There is definitely variability regarding mask use and which European area. When we were in Rome in late November, we stayed in a less touristy area (Prati) and noticed a ~40% mask usage among locals on the bus and in restaurants/shops. Lots of outdoor dining was available too.

I went to Europe twice last year and did not come home with Covid either time. I also went to Mexico and to the Dominican republic twice- no Covid

However, no medications are not more expensive in Europe. As a matter fact, they’re less expensive, so I wouldn’t worry about that. And of course you can submit your medication expense to your travel insurance. And if you don’t have travel insurance in 2023, you probably shouldn’t actually be traveling

And if you do want to wear a mask wear a good mask. I’m still wearing good quality N 95 or KN 95 masks in my day-to-day life and on all my flights ( I got back last week from a flight to California and a multi day sporting event) and I have yet to have Covid. And since I am the primary "point" person for my mother's care I do test frequently after travel. I don't want to wait until i have symptoms as I could give it to her before I do and that could be a fatal blow for her (yes she's fully vaccinated ,but there are some significant underlying health issues)

So last night after i posted I talked to my neighbor. She's a senior Flight Attendant with Delta. She generally crews at least two fights a month to Europe. So far no Covid. Wonder why all those other people are "getting it on the plane" :)

Everyone who travels internationally does not get covid. Some people do get covid, just like some people do get covid here at home. I had three different trips to Europe last year for a total of 7 weeks travel with my most recent trip in December. I did not get covid.

I also traveled to some domestic locations and did not get covid.

I could get it tomorrow or any time, that is the nature of the disease. The issue will always be that when you leave your home and enter into public locations your opportunities to come into with an infected person increase. Each person needs to choose their risk tolerance, what actions they feel prudent to reduce that risk, and accept that the best made plans could be side tracked by getting covid.

I can’t speak for France but did tour Portugal, parts of Spain, and two weeks in Mexico recently. We wore N95 masks on the planes and in crowded venues. We do so at home too. So far we have been Covid free. My son got a second case of Covid in London last summer. He took no precautions.

Was in France three times last year, living normal life, eating indoors etc, no Covid, but did catch it at home. It is luck of the draw. Triple vacinated

Like Simon, I live in France, but I know absolutely no one who has had Çovid recently among French friends, English -speaking friends, or French family and this has been the case for a long time. I've been to gatherings with 30 unmasked people and one 3-hour lunch before Christmas that had (unexpectedly) 152 people. I was sure that was going to be a vector, but it wasn't. It's been a non-issue for a while. The passe-sanitaire was effective with the French population. FYI, I flew transatlantic 5 times and by ship once last year, always part of the masked minority.

It's possible that people coming from the US who normally don't take public transportation and don't live in an urban center have less daily exposure and resistance built up in their bodies. Therefore, even if those of us who live in urban centers aren't symptomatic after exposure, you could be because you've had less exposure. It's in the air. I think your experience with Covid in France will depend on how much you've been exposed to tiny doses previously, among many other factors. It's impossible to compare or generalize.

Taking into account only geographic origin, will someone from New York City who is exposed daily, the way urban Europeans are, have the same reaction to exposure as a person from a suburb who drives everywhere and who masks every time they get out of the car?

Some extremely cautious US family members got it recently in the US, along with neighbors, schoolmates and co-workers. So far in France, the last peak we had was in November. But Knock on wood.

Similar impressions as Bets here. Many people got COVID last fall, but despite mask usage being basically zero, I haven't heard of any cases lately. The flu epidemic has been quite severe, however - but this year's flu vaccine is apparently effective.

Here's the website I use to keep an eye on covid in France.

https://covidtracker.fr/

Arrow down to the map to see the overall incidence of covid; then if you want more specific info click on a particular departement.

No-one is saying that everyone who flies catches COVID. However, what people ARE saying is that if you travel by plane and if you catch COVID it is likely that the two events are not a coincidence.

You can, of course, catch COVID anywhere, but places where you are spending 6 hours in close proximity to 300 people are where you are at greatest risk.

At the moment (yesterday) the R. number in the Loire Valley is 0.75 . That is up from 0.59 last week. That's probably not statistically significant, but I'd rather it was moving in the other direction.

airplanes do fairly well with air filtering but airports are crowded cess pits with no one in masks -- I am guessing that is the greatest risk. We have flown now 3 times to France without getting it yet but we also have many friends who had gotten it traveling after avoiding it for a long time. Get your booster, get your flu shot, wear a mask in the airport and on the plane and cross your fingers. There is reason to believe that viral load is related to how sick you get and so even if the mask doesn't protect entirely (it is most efficient at not letting YOU infect others not the other way around) it might reduce the amount of virus you inhale and thus the severity of the illness. The other benefit is that we have not had a cold much less flu in the last 3 years. I probably will always wear a mask on planes for the rest of my life just to avoid the cold I so often end up with after a long plane trip.

Thank for your replies.