A devastated sister who hasn’t seen her brother in two years was forced to cancel their reunion holiday after France blocked UK travellers amid rising Omicron Covid cases.
Their plans for a family reunion ski trip were scuppered after the suddenly introduced border ban.
Katya Fowler, 23, was due to travel to France on Christmas Eve to spend the week with her family skiing.
She was to be joined by her brother Francis, 29, and his wife Michelle, 26, who live in America, along with their parents and another family.
The trip was supposed to be a big reunion for the family who has been apart for years.
However, France’s tourist ban, amid growing concerns over the Omicron variant, forced the family to cancel their plans at the last minute.
Because of the restrictions, Katya has been left wondering when she will see her brother again.
She said: "We were getting so close to the date we were going to leave and I really thought it was going to happen.
"I do appreciate the situation that is going on at the moment but it is so gutting."
Katya’s family makes an annual trip to the resort of Les Arcs every Christmas to spend the festive period together, however, for the second year in a row, they’ve been forced to cancel.
She added: "Last year was a Christmas like no other for a lot of us, so to have what felt like normal back again was such an exciting prospect.
"My brother lives in the States with his wife and it would have been the first time I've seen him in two years.
"It's not the skiing I care about, but it was seeing my family and France and going away at Christmas that has always been really special to me.
"Our family is all over the world and never get to be together but when we go skiing it's the one time of the year we'll all be together, in one place, in one apartment and it's a week we can catch up and see each other.
"It's family time I'm now going to miss out on and I don't know when going to have that again."
Like many other holidaygoers, Katya's cancelled trip comes with other blows, such as the hundreds of pounds spent on accommodation, ski passes, and PCR tests.
Katya said: "I will still be able to spend time with the majority of my family, which I'm grateful for.
"We're lucky in a sense it was an option for Christmas (to go away). I just wish people had more time."
