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    Same-Day Travel Vaccines: What's Possible at Our Gloucester Clinic

    14 July 2026 5 min read

    Yes — You Can Get Travel Vaccines on the Day in Gloucester

    Flying tomorrow and just realised you haven't sorted your vaccinations? The short answer is: yes, we can help — often on the same day. At Gloucester Travel Clinic in Hucclecote, our pharmacists are independent prescribers. That means you don't need a GP referral, you don't need to wait weeks for an appointment, and for many of the most commonly needed travel vaccines we can assess you, prescribe, and vaccinate all in a single visit. There are limits — some vaccines need to be ordered in a day or two ahead, and multi-dose courses (Rabies, Hep B, JE) can't be squeezed into a single afternoon. But for the great majority of "I fly in 48 hours" scenarios, we can get you meaningful protection in time. A quick honesty check up front: same-day is always second-best to planning 6–8 weeks ahead. But something is almost always better than nothing, and we'd rather see you the day before you fly than have you travel with no cover at all.

    Vaccines We Typically Have in Stock for Same-Day Use

    Both of our Hucclecote pharmacies keep the most commonly needed travel vaccines in stock, ready to give on the day. In normal circumstances that includes: - Hepatitis A — one of the most commonly needed vaccines and quick to administer - Typhoid (injection) — single dose, protective within about a week - Combined Hepatitis A + B (Twinrix) — where you want both in one schedule - Tetanus, Diphtheria & Polio (DTP) booster - MMR — for adults topping up a missing dose - Meningitis ACWY — including for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims - Yellow Fever — as a registered Yellow Fever Vaccination Centre, we can issue the WHO certificate at the same appointment (subject to the 10-day rule — see below) Stock levels do fluctuate, particularly around peak summer travel and religious pilgrimage seasons, which is why a quick phone call before you set off is always worth it.

    Vaccines That May Need Ordering In

    A smaller number of travel vaccines aren't kept on the shelf as routine because demand is more sporadic. For these we may need 24–72 hours' notice to order them in from our supplier. These include: - Rabies — full pre-exposure course requires ordering, and takes at least 7 days for an accelerated schedule - Japanese Encephalitis — two-dose course; not usually possible on same-day - Tick-borne Encephalitis (TBE) — most often needed for summer trips to Central/Eastern Europe - Cholera (Dukoral) — oral vaccine, more commonly used for aid workers If your itinerary needs one of these and your trip is imminent, please call us as soon as possible — we can often turn stock around faster than the standard supplier lead time when there's a genuine deadline.

    How Same-Day Bookings Work

    The process is deliberately as simple as we can make it. 1. Call first. Before you set off to the pharmacy, ring either Brookfield or Hucclecote Pharmacy and tell us your destination and departure date. We'll confirm we've got what you need in stock and, if possible, hold you an appointment slot. This 30-second call saves you a wasted trip. 2. Come in with your paperwork. Bring: - Passport — needed for Yellow Fever certificates - Your itinerary — country, dates and (ideally) regions - Any vaccine records you have, or notes on previous travel vaccines - A list of any regular medications and any relevant medical conditions 3. Consultation and vaccination. Our pharmacist runs a short risk assessment against TravelHealthPro guidance, checks for contraindications, confirms the recommended vaccines with you, and then administers them in the same appointment. Most same-day appointments take 20–30 minutes including the consultation itself. 4. Records and certificates. You leave with a vaccination record, any certificates you need (Yellow Fever in particular), and clear instructions on any post-vaccination care.

    Will Same-Day Vaccines Actually Protect You In Time?

    A fair question — and the honest answer varies by vaccine. Vaccines that give useful protection quickly: - Hepatitis A — starts building protection within a few days; not full immunity by day one, but meaningful reduction in risk - Typhoid — protective within about 7 days - Tetanus / DTP — booster kicks in quickly if you've been vaccinated in the past - Meningitis ACWY — protective within about 7–10 days Vaccines with a specific timing rule: - Yellow Fever — the international certificate is only valid 10 days after vaccination, regardless of when the jab was given. If you're flying tomorrow to a Yellow Fever country, we can still vaccinate you, but the certificate won't be valid at the border. In that case, an exemption letter may be a better option — we'll advise on the day. Vaccines that need multiple doses to work fully: - Rabies pre-exposure, Hep B, Japanese Encephalitis — a single dose gives partial priming rather than full protection Even when protection isn't immediate, being vaccinated on the way to a trip means antibody levels rise while you're travelling — reducing the severity of illness even if you're exposed.

    Combining Same-Day Vaccines With Accelerated Schedules

    Where a full course would normally take weeks, we can often start an accelerated schedule on your same-day visit and continue it on your return — or in the country you're travelling to if that's practical. Examples: - Rabies pre-exposure has a 7-day accelerated schedule (days 0, 3 and 7) that can give useful priming before travel and be completed on return - Hepatitis B and Twinrix have a 0, 7, 21-day accelerated schedule with a booster at 12 months - Japanese Encephalitis can sometimes be started before travel with the second dose given after return, though full protection isn't achieved until the second dose is on board Our pharmacists will lay this out clearly at your appointment so you know exactly what protection you have at each point during your trip — and what to be extra careful about in the meantime (particularly bite avoidance and animal contact avoidance where relevant).

    Call Us Today to Confirm Stock

    If your trip is coming up faster than your travel prep, don't panic — but do call. The phone call takes less than a minute and saves you both time and worry. Call or walk in to Gloucester Travel Clinic: - Brookfield Pharmacy, 5 Brookfield Road, Hucclecote, GL3 3HA - Hucclecote Pharmacy, 7 Glenville Parade, Hucclecote, GL3 3ES We see travellers on the day from across Gloucester, Cheltenham, Stroud, the Forest of Dean and the Cotswolds. Even if you fly at dawn tomorrow, it's still worth getting in touch.