I've got an odd request.

[virginicus@universeodon.com]

@Teaceratops A problem worthy of Jules Verne.

[adriano@lile.cl]

@bnut @Teaceratops “can’t fly ever again” is not the type of statement that admits “but it’s ok in short flights actually” as an addendum.

I’m betting blood clot, because it happened to a relative of mine, but honestly it’s not the point.

[tbortels@infosec.exchange]

@Teaceratops

I'd look at intermediate destinations and try to convert a lot of that travel to land. If they can get to India or china, train travel to get a lot closer to home becomes viable.

In the past I'd have suggested California, then cross-country to New York and the QM2 to the UK, but I would avoid the US for now for reasons.

Honestly, it sounds like their best bet is don't miss the March cruise. Best of luck.

[bonkers@nerdculture.de]

@Teaceratops check out cargo ships. I read somewhere, you can travel with the crew quite comfortably, just without much entertainment.

[jamesbooker@floss.social]

@Teaceratops I was working in Germany once with a Canadian colleague. He had a massive heart attack, was told he couldnt fly home.

That's when I learned that cargo ships sometimes have passenger cabins on them - he sailed back on an oil tanker or something.

Also, if it hasn't been suggested already, has someone spoken with the embassy?

[robryk@social.wuatek.is]

@Teaceratops I might be stating the obvious: it might be useful to figure out which part of flying they can't do. For example, would a short flight _at low cabin altitude_ be also out of question?

[jackwilliambell@rustedneuron.com]

@Teaceratops

I can't find my notes for it, but I once looked into travel via cargo ship. Turns out it's a thing and there are several travel agencies who specialize in booking them.

[tsukkitsune@is.nota.live]

@Teaceratops

Cruise ships are, unfortunately, pretty much the name of the game, and yes, they have long gaps in their schedules for transoceanic trips. Before 2020, freighter travel (essentially, every cargo ship has an "owner's cabin", and when that's not occupied they can be hired out) was also an option, but that totally went away during the pandemic lockdowns and has been VERY slow to come back.

I had been planning on taking a trans-Atlantic freighter trip in 2020. It would have been my first.

[tsukkitsune@is.nota.live]

@Teaceratops

That's surprising. As far as I can tell, all the major ports on the Australian east coast are connected to Perth by a rail link.

This site also details how to get from Britain to India by surface travel, although I don't know if ships between Australia and India are more frequent than those to Europe via Suez.

https://www.seat61.com/Australia.htm

[mirjam_008@mastodon.nl]

@Teaceratops I would also check out possibilities from the port of Darwin via Indonesia / Singapore. The distances are shorter than from Perth. This might be easier to arrange and less of a risk healthwise.

[vickforcella@mastodon.derg.nz]

@Teaceratops All cargo ships have spare bedrooms. They can be booked and the food is ok too.
One big problem, it's a cargo ship and not a cruise ship. That means that the boaty isn't as stable. Cargo doesn't care. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship_motions

[warmasterpalak@meow.social]

@Teaceratops

No flights mean boat to China, train to India, and whatever they can find from India back to Europe. Looking at probably a month of travel time.

[oddline@tacobelllabs.net]

@gcvsa @Teaceratops sadly most shipping lines stopped taking passengers in 2020, and never restarted.

the only one I know that still runs goes from somewhere in Germany to South Africa

(I also don't think they'd accept passengers with serious health issues in any case)

[purplechair@peoplemaking.games]

@Teaceratops Ignoring time and cost issues, my vote would be this 'cruise to Vancouver, trans-Canadian rail tour with a break in Montreal, cruise from Halifax to the UK' option. Seems easiest visa-wise and has the benefit (?) of getting to stop in with yous along the way.

This whole situation sounds really complicated and stressful, but hopefully will make for an amazing family story once this is all over??

I looked up a cruise although I imagine you have already done all this sort of thing: https://ozcruising.com.au/searchcruise/bysearchbar/0/-111/-111/639/false/-111/-111/-111/-111/all/693

[teaceratops@peoplemaking.games]

@purplechair yeah, that's my feelings too - it also gives them a mid-trip break to recover, if they're not feeling so well still. If they do the full trip on one cruise, and something happens again, the next country might be somewhere less comfortable for them to stay in.

And yeah, they have 3 adult kids, so the first thing everyone did was search cruises 🤣 I was actually the slow one there. I want them to have a couple of back-up plans should the situation change.

[teaceratops@peoplemaking.games]

@WarmasterPalak unfortunately. It is extraordinarily difficult for British people to exit India on anything other than a plane. Possibly impossible for 2 people in their late 70s with new health conditions. We used to live there for a few years, and yeah, while possible, it's not encouraged.

[teaceratops@peoplemaking.games]

@markjustmark at the moment, the doctors are trying to figure out what *caused* the problem in the first place, but at the moment. It's a 'no flying ever again. Unless we magically figure out why this thing happened'.

[davidschulz@social.linux.pizza]

@Teaceratops I’m seeing you’ve had a lot of replies that I don’t have visibility of, so apologies if I’m repeating.

Will rail travel to Perth work? You can ride the Indian Pacific to Perth - https://www.journeybeyondrail.com.au/indian-pacific/

Fair warning it’s not a ‘real’ intercity rail experience like you might find in a civilised country. It’s more of a novelty tourism experience. Kinda like “experience rail travel from a bygone era because we haven’t made any infrastructure investment in high speed rail.” Although I think you’re not supposed to say the second part out loud.

It will be slow and expensive but it will get them there.

[literatesavant@mastodon.au]

@Teaceratops did they take out travel insurance? Sometimes these policies include medical evacuation assistance. Letting the pros figure this out if possible would take a lot of load off you, because the logistics of figuring this out yourself are going to be tough.

[panda@freiburg.social]

@Teaceratops some container ships offer quite comfortable transportation for normal passengers.
I know of a German company offering this under the term "Frachtschiff Reisen".
Good luck