Half term is a total washout – I will go to any lengths to travel abroad

When a friend sends 21 picture-perfect holiday snaps from the Maldives, Charlotte Cripps thinks about flying off for Christmas – but that was before lockdown 2.0 was announced

(Amara May)

I heard some yummy mummies in my local park talking about chartering private planes as if it was as essential in a pandemic as a priority slot on Ocado. I always thought hiring a jet was reserved for the super-rich and celebrities? Maybe they just really don’t want to wear a mask? But at £20,000 a pop one-way to Ibiza on a 13-seater plane, there must be a good reason. 

I’m intrigued – they notice my raised eyebrows – and reassure me that it’s an investment in their health and mental wellbeing.  Mainly it’s safer – particularly if somebody is high risk – like my 88-year old-dad – but it’s also more flexible, so you can book last minute to make sure the destination of your choice is still in a travel corridor.  

It’s even possible to take pets. “Muggles would not be a problem for a short-haul to Europe,” this yummy mummy tells me. She obviously hasn’t spent any time with him.