I used Brittany Ferries (as usual) for a quick trip to UK in August.
Lots of information online and at the booking stage re: all the safety measures they have in place. Staff at Caen port and onboard were as helpful as ever.
Outward journey was day time and busy so I stayed in cabin for the duration. The return was a quieter night crossing and plenty of space in the restaurant at breakfast. No problems.
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The EHIC stays legal until 31/12/20, it is private travel insurance that generally becomes invalid if there is a Home Office ban on a country.
The local shops here in the tiny places we are visiting seem well stocked to us - and much more range than we get back home I guess because people here are richer.
Which is a good thing as all the cafés and bars are now closed…the new rules are completely illogical!
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You are extremely fortunate.
Several of our local stores had nearly empty shelves once covid hit earlier in the year … and they’ve never really got back to what was normal since that time…
The shelves are fullish… but that is due to way stuff is spaced-out…
and variety… is minimal
eg: firelighters…
I prefer a particular sort where I light the outer cellophane… but none of the local shops have that sort anymore…
Some have the white blocks which one breaks into squares/ pieces
Some have the compressed wood blocks.
Few offer both sorts…
Fresh fruit and veg… that’s local and is excellent.
Meat is local too… thankfully
so we are eating well… 
dried goods are available in the “ownbrand” not the wide variety of before…
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That sounds chemically - maybe they have stopped making them! I LOVE the action wood / natural ones - only 32c a box - I buy about a dozen at a time when I go there a couple of times a winter! I probably should think about a trip there actually as there are a few bits and peices that I stock up on there (huge packs of crispy fried onions - 99c, crafty things etc) just in case things get further shut down.
Our local shops are fine too, even in lock down they were well stocked.
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Speaking as a resident in Manche, although somewhat further south than Barneville Carteret, I would say that the biggest problem in making the trip would be the quarantine on return, I did a brief to-uk-and-back trip in late July during the short window with no UK quarantine, in order to get the removal company in to clear my house there. It was rather depressing and stressful being in the UK, but the travel itself (Portsmouth/Caen) was fine. One trip was overnight and the other was during the day and Brittany Ferries did a great job on managing the process. I would recommend grabbing food at the restaurant and eating it in the cabin though as I found it less worrying.
As far as shopping is concerned, we have no problems at all here. The supermarkets are reasonably stocked and if you hit them around 1pm there won’t be many other shoppers. Our local Lidl has wide aisles and good staff. We tend to use the little shops for meat and other fresh food as there tends to be only one person at a time inside and any queues are outdoors. Again, timing is key.
Manche at the moment has one of the lowest rates of infection (finger crossed this continues!) It’s obviously up to you what level of risk you want to take but if you avoid big conurbations and take sensible precautions you should possibly find it safer than the UK (depending on where you live of course!)
Note for Stella - I don’t know whether there is a U supermarket accessible to you but they do an own-brand firelighter with the cellophane wrapper to ignite and is definitely our preferred option for our stove (we do like the natural ones for outside and barbecues though)
Good luck John - keep us posted…
Angela
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Nope… not stopped… they are stocked in Auchan at Perigueux… as I found out today…
They are safest for me as I have dodgy hands … thus all I touch is cellophane (whatever) and even with a twitchy match… I can safely light them “just like that”… 
(darn shame that our local “small” Auchan does NOT stock my preferred sort… as I can’t see the point of going over to Perigueux just for these…)
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I hope you stocked up!
3 x packets of 28… so alright for a while
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Mmm… I might ask friends who are quite near a Super U… to check things out as and when they can.
thanks for the suggestion…
I must admit although the local Tesco is now fairly well stocked there are still the occasional odd shortages and empty bits of shelf.
When I did manage to get over to France I can’t say I noticed anything missing in the local Super U that we habitually use.
Of course in the UK we have “real” Brexit looming, I wonder how well stocks will hold up.
Ah good! I thought about posting you some but then thought that La Poste probably doesn’t approve of inflammable stuff in the post 
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That was an “Ah good” for Stella… not, most definitely NOT an “Ah Good” forthe upcoming real Brexit, Paul… (I think there’s an embarassed emoji somewhere but couldn’t find it…)
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Another impromptu purchase this morning at Auchan … bags of sweets for the kids at Halloween…
so pleased …
then I get home to learn that Halloween is cancelled this year… due to the Prefect’s latest edict… aaaargh.
Do it ! What else you gonna do, sit in your house for the next ten years.
But.
I would get internet in france.
From my experience that ain’t easy (SFR can make a ball of knots from a strait piece of string) with it you can “click & collect” at yr local super W or V or it it U PLUS you get to learn the names of groceries, oh what joy.
Best of British mate
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Hi and welcome to the forum - just one thing, “The Management” have a rule about real full name on your registration and @cat is quite a stickler for it.
Would you mind obliging?
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Thats a great post Angela, many thanks, Ive replied to your message
Just a massive thank you to everyone who bothered to post answers, its all really good info and will more than help in my decision 
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Thanks Van, and welcome, (I’ve only been here 5mins meself)
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We always collect pinecones on walks which we stock for lighting the fire. When we look at packets of firelighters they list colza oil and wood fibre as ‘ingredients’. So this year we are testing dunking the pine cones in the colza oil we’ve used for deep frying, and then laying them out to dry. Anyone else have ideas for homemade/recycled firelighters?
(I got a text from a neighbour to say that this year the adults will be leaving sweets on the kids’ doorsteps in a ghostly way…)
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