Just four countries on the government’s newly-unveiled ‘green’ travel list will allow Brits to holiday without quarantining.
This evening it was announced that 12 countries and territories have made the list, including Portugal, Israel, Gibraltar, Australia and New Zealand.
Also included were Singapore, Brunei, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and the Falkland Islands, alongside the Azores and Madeira territories in Portugal.
But before excited tourists packing their bags and book a flight, it’s important to note that heading to some of these destinations will mean they must spend the first few days of their trip isolating – and some will not let them in at all.
Only Portugal, including the Azores and Madeira, and Gibraltar are open to Brits without quarantining – with Iceland and Israel also not enforcing isolation but requiring holidaymakers to be vaccinated.
Portugal is one of just four countries that will let Brits in without quarantining
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Despite being on the green list, people will not be able to go on holiday to Australia, New Zealand or Singapore, as they are closed to UK tourists.
People arriving in the Faroe Islands are required to take a test on arrival and self-isolate for 10 days, although there is an option to release after four days with a PCR test.
Foreigners touching down in Brunei will have to pay £188 for a Covid test, and can be made to quarantine for up to two weeks, according to latest travel advice.
And if you’re heading to the Falkland Islands, it’s best to book a long break as visitors are expected to self-isolate for a period of 14 days after arrival.
Iceland will let UK visitors into the country without quarantining as long as they’ve been vaccinated (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
The countries were selected because of low Covid infection rates, good progress with vaccinations and the absence of known mutant strains.
However the government has advised holidaymakers to be cautious as regulations could change if the situation in any of the countries worsens.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the removal of international travel restrictions was “necessarily cautious” and that the Government must “make absolutely sure” the countries the UK reconnects with are safe.
He said: “We in this country have managed to construct a fortress against Covid. But the disease is still prevalent in other parts of the world, most notably at the moment in India.
Australia is on the green list – but UK tourists are not allowed in (Image: Getty Images)
“In fact, more new cases of Covid have been diagnosed around the world in the last seven days than at any time since the pandemic began.”
He added: “That’s why today’s announcement, removing the stay in the UK restrictions from May 17, is necessarily cautious.
“We must make absolutely sure that the countries we reconnect with are safe, that their infection rates are low and their vaccination rates are high.
“It means making sure we are not incubating the most dangerous variants that they’re not and that they have safe and secure surveillance in place.”
The most popular European destinations with UK holidaymakers – such as Spain, Italy, France and Greece – are on the amber list.
That means people returning from those countries must self-isolate at home for at least five days providing you return a negative test.
But Mr Shapps said “you should not be travelling to these places right now”.
