Why the UK has fallen into a travel black hole

The UK: home to tradition, cozy cottages and Christmas movies. What better place to spend the holiday period than in a thatched cottage like in "The Holiday," or have a romantic airport arrival channeling "Love Actually"? This year could be the perfect time for it, too -- the normally mild UK has seen snow even in southern England. A white Christmas could be on the cards for the first time in years. There's just one problem: getting there. Because although this is the first Christmas since 2019 that the UK has had no Covid-induced travel restrictions, whether it's a feasible destination this month is another question. Amid political chaos -- the country went through three prime ministers in seven weeks, earlier in the fall -- the UK is seeing industrial action on an unprecedented scale. Strikes have been called for nearly every day of December: for nurses (their first ever strike), health workers, ambulance drivers, postal workers, driving examiners, bus drivers, rail workers, highways workers, baggage handlers and Border Force. The last five, of course, impact travel. "This is really serious -- it's a massive issue," says Rhys Jones, aviation expert at travel site Head for Points. "There's nothing routine about the combination or the length of the strikes."<br/>