Almost every travel health problem is a timing problem
Practical guides for UK travellers on vaccinations, travel insurance, the GHIC and carrying prescription medicines — organised around the one thing that determines whether any of it works: lead time.
Countdown before departure
- 12 weeksBook the travel clinicMulti-dose courses need months, not days.
- 8 weeksApply for or renew the GHICFree from the NHS site; arrives by post.
- 6–4 weeksStart vaccine coursesRabies, hepatitis B, Japanese encephalitis where needed.
- 10 daysYellow fever validityCertificate only counts from day 10 after the jab.
Full schedule: The twelve-week countdown.
Latest guides
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Start here
Travel health admin: the four things that actually matter before you fly
Vaccinations, insurance, the GHIC and your medicines — what each one covers, and the gaps between them.
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Timelines and checklists
The twelve-week countdown: when to book what before you travel
A working schedule for vaccines, the GHIC, insurance and medicines, from twelve weeks out to the day of departure.
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Compared
NHS versus private travel vaccines: what is free and what you pay for
Which travel vaccinations the NHS provides free at a GP surgery, which are chargeable, and how to combine the two.
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Mistakes and myths
Seven travel health mistakes, and what they actually cost
The recurring errors in insurance, vaccination timing and medicines that turn a manageable problem into an expensive one.
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Paperwork and money
GHIC, insurance and taking medicines abroad: the paperwork
How to apply for a GHIC, what to check in a travel insurance policy, and how to carry prescription medicines legally.
Topics
- Start hereThe four systems that make up travel health preparation, and the gaps between them.
- Timelines and checklistsWhen to book what, from twelve weeks out to the day of departure.
- ComparedNHS versus private, card versus policy, pharmacy versus travel clinic.
- Mistakes and mythsThe recurring errors that turn a small problem into an expensive one.
- Paperwork and moneyGHIC applications, insurance small print and carrying medicines legally.