Published: 16th March 2020
Updated: 17th May 2021

The current situation regarding self-catering holidays in England is as follows;

Holidays in self-catering properties are now able to go ahead for single households (including support bubbles) AND multiple households provided that the party is no more than two households (of any size) or conforms to the ‘rule of six’ (that is, the party size is no greater than six people (from up to six households).

We await further announcements regarding the next key date in the roadmap, which is 21st June 2021.

Please remember it is the responsibility of the guest to follow all legislation when holidaying with us.

Here at Durrants Holiday Cottages keeping our holidaymakers, homeowners, staff and our local community safe is our top priority. We have researched extensively and undertaken a range of measures so that our holidaymakers can enjoy holidaying in and around Southwold, whilst maintaining the safety of us all. You can read more about the safety measures we have implemented here.

There is a lot of information to process in relation to Covid-19 and coming on holiday, especially as the Government advice is ever-changing, so we have compiled some FAQs which we hope will put your mind at ease and make you feel confident in booking a Southwold holiday with Durrants Holiday Cottages.

As always our small, dedicated team are readily on hand to assist you with every step of your booking so please don’t hesitate to contact us with any additional queries you may have.

If there are Government travel restrictions in place which prevent us from coming on holiday, can we change our holiday to later in the year or to next year?

If you are unable to go on holiday due to Government travel restrictions at the time your holiday is due to commence you are able to do the following:

• Transfer your holiday dates to new dates in 2021 with no additional fees. Please be aware if you wish to transfer your dates you must choose an equivalent pricing period to the dates you had already booked (our team can assist you with this). If you decide to transfer your holiday dates to non-equivalent dates in 2021, any difference in price will be applied or credited as appropriate.

• Should you be undecided on new holiday dates you are eligible to receive a credit voucher for the value of your holiday for you to use on any of our cottages in Southwold and surrounding area. Please note the credit voucher must be used on a holiday before the end of 2021. View the full terms and conditions.

• If either of the above are not suited to you, you are eligible to receive a full refund of the amount already paid which will be refunded to you by bank transfer.

What happens if the Government imposes a local lockdown in Suffolk during our holiday?

As per the Government’s advice, the recommendation is that you should curtail your stay. However if you are unable to do so, you should finish your holiday as planned but during the remainder of your stay ensure you reduce socialising and follow the local regulations.

Can we cancel our holiday if we do not wish to travel despite there being no Government restrictions?

We understand it may be an anxious time for some of our guests, however if the cottage is legally available and you are not legally restricted from travelling then our standard booking conditions apply. 

Why have you changed your arrival and departure times at your cottages and are there any exceptions?

The safety of our holidaymakers, homeowners, housekeepers and staff is our top priority and we have adjusted our arrival and departure times to help minimise the risk of transmission to everyone. Extra time is required for our housekeepers to service properties between departures and arrivals to undertake the additional safety measures we have implemented. With this in mind, we regret that there are no exceptions to these changes in times. For those who have booked a beach hut, the revised arrival time is 11.00am however the departure time remains the same.

Is your office in Southwold open for key collection or if we want to pop in for any other reason?

When we are open for business with full staff, however the office may be closed to the general public to ensure our staff are kept safe. If you have been instructed to come to the office to collect keys to your holiday cottage, please ensure you respect social distancing measures at all times when approaching the office entrance as you may encounter other guests who are waiting to collect their keys. Please knock on the door and wait for a member of the team to come and greet you. If you expect to arrive after office hours, we can leave your keys in our office keysafe for collection. Please contact us to arrange this prior to your arrival. We recommend using hand sanitiser after operating the keysafe as other guests may have access to it.

What should we do if one of our party feels unwell during our holiday?

If you or a party member are displaying symptoms of Coronavirus you must follow the Government guidance accordingly. When you contact the NHS’s 111 service, please ensure you state that you are staying in a holiday cottage. If you are advised to stay within your holiday cottage we will do our utmost to facilitate this however please be aware you will be liable to pay any additional costs for a longer stay, as well as our administration fees should we need to move any other incoming bookers.

You should familiarise yourself with symptoms of Coronavirus by checking the Government website where you can also find information on how to obtain a test.

Where can I find further information on Coronavirus?

Once your holiday has been paid in full, we will issue you with some handy guidance on extra safety measures we have implemented to help keep you safe on holiday with us. You can read more about this here. However we also recommend that prior to your arrival you ensure you have familiarised yourself with all the latest Government guidance.