Alice Turing
Living with a chronic condition can make travelling more challenging, but it doesn’t have to keep you at home. Whether you live with cardiovascular disease, digestive disease, cancer, diabetes or a musculoskeletal or neurological condition, you can shape a holiday around your needs, so you feel in control and supported at every stage.
Changes to your routine and environment can throw off symptom management and long journeys can be tiring, especially if fatigue or pain forms part of your condition. Rather than trying to fit yourself into prescriptive standard arrangements, build your itinerary around your needs.
By prioritising these needs and choosing arrangements that remove some of the daily effort of managing your condition, you can have a positive and worthwhile holiday abroad without negatively impacting your wellbeing.
Planning around your needs
Only you know exactly how your condition might impact the practicalities of travel. The main things to consider include logistics, climate, pace and crowds. Start planning early enough to consider how your condition might affect each aspect and make changes or arrangements accordingly. You might benefit from special assistance at airports or priority entry at popular tourist sites, or simply having more downtime around activities.
It can also help to speak to your GP or a specialist health professional before you leave, particularly if you have concerns about whether you’re fit to travel or what to do if you need to arrange treatment abroad. It could be advisable to have a pre-travel medical check-up before departure if you take regular medication.
In general, giving your itinerary some breathing space is sensible. If a six-hour flight is likely to leave you exhausted, for example, spend your first afternoon resting rather than heading straight out sightseeing.
Organising your medication
Sort out your medication well before you start packing. Work out how much you’ll need for the whole trip and allow for unexpected delays, then check how you should store it and carry it when you’re travelling.
Generally, it’s best to keep medication in its original pharmacy packaging and travel with a copy of your prescription and a letter from your prescriber. If you take controlled drugs, check the rules for your destination via the government website or directly with the country’s embassy, as different countries apply different restrictions.
You should carry controlled drugs in hand luggage when entering or leaving the UK. Keeping essential medication with you also means a delayed suitcase doesn’t immediately become a medical problem.
Getting tailored travel insurance
A chronic condition can change the type of cover you need, so look for travel insurance that covers pre-existing conditions and includes financial protection for sufficient medical care. Declare your existing conditions accurately and answer the insurer’s medical screening questions fully. Check the details, such as whether repatriation is included, rather than choosing on price alone.
If you’re travelling in Europe, a UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) can provide access to necessary state healthcare in participating countries. However, the NHS stresses that it doesn’t replace travel insurance.
Choosing supportive accommodation
Where you stay can make managing your condition considerably easier. Focus on the location, facilities and level of surface provided over the hotel aesthetics.
You might prioritise a lift if stairs cause pain or fatigue, a fridge if your medication requires appropriate temperature-controlled storage, or a city-centre location in longer walks are hard to navigate. If dietary choices help you manage your symptoms, self-catering facilities or a hotel that can accommodate your specific requirements may give you more control.
Contact the accommodation before booking if an essential feature isn’t clearly confirmed online. Finding out that your “accessible” room involves several steps is much easier to deal with from home than at check-in.
Ignoring the crowds
You don’t need to experience a destination as most tourists do or at its busiest to experience it properly. Travelling outside peak periods, visiting popular attractions at quieter times or prioritising less popular local experiences can make days out less physically demanding if standing, heat, fatigue or limited access to facilities affects your condition.
Instead of joining a long lunchtime queue, for instance, you could book the first museum slot of the morning, rest during the busiest part of the afternoon and head out again later. You’re not missing out by travelling at your own pace. You’re creating a holiday where you have more energy for the experiences that matter to you.
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I'm Alice and I live with a dizzying assortment of invisible disabilities, including ADHD and fibromyalgia. I write to raise awareness and end the stigma surrounding mental and chronic illnesses of all kinds.
