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Covid-19 Travel News

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Latest travel news (last updated 5th April)


The latest press conference from the government was short on detail for reopening overseas travel this summer, but it contained one crucial piece of information - that the Global Travel Taskforce had published a short preview of its recommendations, including confirmation of a "traffic light" system for other countries to show which ones we'll be able to visit easily later in the year. This is the first time the government has confirmed that there will be a traffic light system this summer, or how it will work.

From that newly-published update: "When non-essential international travel does return it will do so with a risk-based "traffic light" system. This will add to our current system a new green category with no isolation requirement on return to the UK - although pre-departure and post-arrival tests would still be needed. This new category will accommodate countries where we judge the risk to be lower, based for instance on vaccinations, infection rates, the prevalence of variants of concern, and their genomic sequencing capacity (or access to genomic sequencing)...It is too early to say which countries will be on the green list when non-essential international travel resumes. These decisions will be driven by the data and evidence nearer the time, which we cannot predict now. In advance of the resumption of non-essential international travel, we will set out our initial assessment of which countries will fall into which category. Thereafter countries will move between the red, amber and green lists depending on the data."

The update also mentions the likely use of covid-status certificates (more often referred to as "vaccination passports"), especially to facilitate travel to countries requiring them.

We're not likely to find out which countries are on the green list until closer to travel opening up, and it's not yet clear whether or not that will be on May 17. But the traffic light system means the government plans to let us fly off on holiday this summer, and as we wait for more details that alone is reason enough for a sigh of relief.


What does that mean for my holiday this year?

There's going to be three main considerations booking an overseas holiday this year.

When can we go?
We're expecting more detail in the announcement on Monday April 12, but the date that's been cited ever since February is May 17, and with the next stage on the path out of lockdown coming on schedule, that date looks more likely than ever.

Where will let us in?
It's all very well to be allowed out of the country again, but other countries have to be open to visitors. New Zealand is lovely, and effectively Covid-free, but (not coincidentally) its borders are also closed.

The good news is that lots of countries are either open to visitors already, or have announced plans to open up to UK holidaymakers, with appropriatre precautions, as soon as we're allowed to fly again. We've got details of the most likely destinations this summer below.

Which countries we can come back home from without having to quarantine either at home (bit of a hassle) or at the airport (punitively expensive)?
We'll get more details on that in next week's announcement, and as we get closer to overseas travel re-opening. For the moment, we have some reasonable assumptions based on the criteria being used.

OK, which countries do we think will let us in?

Lots of places are either already open to visitors with a vaccine or a negative test, or have announced plans to open up to UK visitors in good time for our restrictions being lifted.

Some of the highlights include:

  • Spain, especially the Canary and Balearic islands, has announced its intention to be first to accept UK visitors when travel resumes. Certainly the island economies are normally dependent on UK visitors, so they're generally keen to have us back, and if our governments can agree reciprocal protocols Spain could be one of our summer destinations.
  • Greece has likewise said it hopes to admit UK visitors in time for the holiday season. Some of the Greek islands especially were the most consistently-available holiday destinations last year.
  • Cyprus has declared its intention to admit UK holidaymakers from May onwards.
  • Iceland is already happy to admit vaccinated travellers, and has one of the lowest Covid rates in the world.
  • Israel has signed travel corridor deals with a number of countries already, and is one of the only countries on earth with a vaccine programme at least as successful as our own so is an obvious choice for an early corridor.
  • Sri Lanka is keen to admit visitors, has developed a protocol for admitting holidaymakers into resorts while limiting contact with local people, and also reports very low infection rates.
  • Turkey is willing to admit visitors without even a test - which in principle could make it a hassle-free destination for the summer, but also raises the prospect of infection rates climbing once the season gets underway. Turkey was also taken off the UK's travel corridor last summer for what is politely called "irregularities" in its reporting of infection data.
  • We've even seen speculation that the USA will be on the early green list. They do have a great vaccine rollout, so it's possible, but we'd say wait for more information on that one.

Combined with the UK's proposed green list, which countries will we actually be able to go on holiday to?

Remember - you only normally go on holiday to one country at once anyway. So if just Greece is open, it's fine to go to Greece. Realistically though, we now expect a good range of destinations to be open from day one, and more to open up over the summer.

Based on the likelihood of inclusion on our green list calculated by Paul Charles at the PC Agency, and the entry policies of the countries at the other end, the best current guesses for destinations when holidays resume are:

In Europe, Portugal, Malta, Gibraltar and Iceland all have tourist-friendly entry policies and are likely to make our green list from day one. Spain is also heading in the right direction for all indicators.

If you're willing to travel a bit further afield, we expect Dubai, Israel, USA, Mexico, Sri Lanka and Barbados to make the initial list too.

When can I book a holiday?

Whenever you like! Claims earlier in the year that it's illegal to even book travel during lockdown were balderdash - it's just non-essential trips themselves that are not allowed at the moment.

Prices are likely to rise as time goes on and lockdown gradually phases out so - as long as you can get decent cancellation and amendment terms from your holiday provider - you might be best to book sooner rather than later and then cancel or change your dates if anything changes.

If all goes to plan, UK holidays will be back from April 12 in self-contained accommodation, or May 17 in a standard hotel, and international trips from May 17.

At which point everyone will want to book, prices will skyrocket and flights and resorts will sell out - so if you're planning to go away for the summer, our advice is to pick your dates, check your cancellation terms will let you change your mind, and book before the rush.

What is the traffic light system?

It's the UK government's propsed new system for categorising countries once travel reopens. Green for countries which you can easily and conveniently visit for a holiday because you can come and go with just a test and no isolation period; red for countries on the banned list (so requiring an expensive and inconvenient quarantine when you get back); and orange for everywhere else.

Will I need a vaccine passport?

The vaccine is of course not mandatory. Some carriers, such as TUI, have explicitly said that they won't be turning away unvaccinated passengers. That said, it may be a challenge to find holiday destinations enthusiastic about letting in unvaccinated passengers, at least for the moment. Unfair though that may be for younger travellers who are often last on the list for the vaccine, ultimately it will be up to foreign governments and carriers to decide on the risks they are willing to bear in order to get their holiday season back this summer.

To visit some destinations, it will be helpful, and save you a test, to bring proof that you've had the vaccine. A number of the top tourist spots - for example Greece and Cyprus - have announced that they expect to admit UK visitors either with a recent negative test or proof of vaccination, so if you've had it, certainly it's worth taking the paperwork.

Turkey announced in March that it may allow UK visitors to enter without proof of vaccination or even a negative test, so if Turkey makes the green list it may be possible to visit without either.

A handful of countries appear to be open only to visitors who can prove they've had the vaccine (or recovered from the virus) - at time of writing it's possible to visit Poland, for example, and skip the otherwise-mandatory self-isolation on arrival if you have proof of vaccination. However Poland is unlikely to be on the UK's green list when travel reopens, and most of the plausible holiday destinations appear ready to accept either a test or vaccination certificate.

Will I need a test to travel and return?

It will depend on the entry policy of the country you plan to visit, and the policy at home for returning travellers. For every major destination we've rounded up the current entry and return requirements at our testing page - pick the country you're planning to visit and we can tell you what test you need and even in most cases recommend a suitable provider.

What about the devolved nations?

The announcements in April apply to England. Travel rules in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland already are different, and may remain so. For example, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has already said she doesn't expect Scotland to open up to international travel as early as May 17.

What's left to decide?

We'll get more details about the reopening of travel next week when the government makes its second announcement on April 12 - if you're signed up to our emails we'll send you an update as soon as we know more.