DASH FOR HOLIDAY BARGAINS BEFORE THE DEALS DRY UP
STIR-CRAZY Britons are rushing to book holidays before restrictions on foreign travel have been lifted.
The Government is due to review the ban today, with an announcement on Wednesday about which countries people can go to.
The UK is setting up “air bridges” with these places, which means travellers will be able to escape the 14-day quarantine period when they return to Britain.
The Government’s statement on Friday about what is likely to come has set in motion unprecedented demand for beach holidays, with some operators offering 70 per cent off.
The hopes of millions of families now rest on officials striking deals with countries with low Covid-19 infection rates.
These are expected to be given green lights on a new traffic light system. Other countries, which have slightly higher coronavirus infection rates, will be amber, while those with very high infection rates, will be “red” – and travel to them will still be banned.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps is expected to announce the first air bridges with France, Spain, Greece, Portugal and Italy from July 6.
Travel company TUI, which usually takes more than six million people on holiday each year, said bookings were up 50 per cent on last week.
It plans to fly customers from Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham to Crete, Rhodes, Kos, Corfu, Tenerife, Lanzarote, Majorca and Ibiza from July 11.
Managing director Andrew Flintham said: “We feel positive about our plans to resume a small summer holiday programme to destinations where we hope air bridge agreements will be in place.”
Hays Travel, Britain’s largest independent travel agent, which bought Thomas Cook last year, said the phones “had not stopped ringing”.
Boss John Hays added: “It has just been remarkable. New bookings are increasing by the day. Speaking to colleagues across the country it is clear there is significant demand to get away this summer.”
Currently all but essential international travel is off-limits.
It is expected that when air bridges open there will be a requirement for tourists to obey the social distancing rules in the country they are visiting.
In Portugal, Eliderico Viegas, president of the Algarve’s Association for Hotels and Tourism, said: “The British are our main market.We are counting on them to rise to this new challenge and new opportunity.
“We’ve faced a problem that we have never had to face in the past. But now we are almost virus-free in the region. The Algarve is the destination where British people feel most at home. We and the British go very well together.” Meanwhile Travelsupermarket.com found web searches for Marbella were up by 80 per cent, Crete by 46 per cent,Tenerife by 42 per cent and Rhodes by 35 per cent.
Among the deals are 300,000 easyJet flights for £29.99. A spokesman said the airline would be operating around 30 per cent of its usual flights this summer. He added: “From July 1 our schedule will build to
around 500 flights a day across our European network, including more than 900 flights a week to and from the UK.”
Jet2, which flies to Malaga, Lanzarote, Palma, Ibiza, Almeria, Gran Canaria, Tenerife and Menorca, is due to restart on July 15.
Meanwhile, Eurotunnel said bookings had “exploded” and “people are searching for safe ways to travel and deciding that travelling from home to holiday without getting out of your car is the best way to go”.
Martin Lewis, of Moneysavingexpert, said: “The mood music sounds like travel to most European destinations will soon open up, certainly by August. So if you’re willing to take a small gamble on booking pre-announcement, after which it is possible prices will start to rise, you may be able to bag a bargain.” But Home Secretary Priti Patel, who drew up the quarantine guidelines, warned: “These measures won’t come in overnight, they will take time, because some of this will be down to negotiation, discussions with certain countries.”
The Department for Transport would only say: “International travel corridors remain an option under consideration by the Government.”