Dear Reader

ONE of the best pieces of travel news to emerge this week is the potential demise of that dementing Tannoy announcement, ‘See it. Say it. Sorted’.

Mind you, at Reading station the other day there was a warning about ‘slippery surfaces’ just as I swung towards the escalators and fell flat on my face. ‘Are you all right, love?’ said a woman wearing a Network Rail badge, as I apologised for such clumsiness and picked up my glasses.

Apologising can be embarrassing, as the PM would confirm. But I can’t help thinking we deserve an apology from those scientists, who made such outlandish predictions about how the Omicron variant could lead to 10,000 hospitalisations a day, when the latest figures show they’ve dropped to fewer than 2,000.

Next week, hopefully, the Government will do away with all testing for the fully-vaccinated returning to the UK or coming in as a visitor in what will be a vital step towards the country returning to ‘complete normality’, as Boris Johnson described it. Of course, it won’t be completely normal for several months as many of us will continue to wear masks and take other safety measures, but the arguments for dispensing with travel restrictions are compelling.

Research funded by Airlines UK and Manchester Airports Group makes clear that testing no longer delivers ‘significant benefits’ and any benefits there might be are outweighed by the damage they do to the economy.

VisitBritain estimates that the UK has lost £50 billion from inbound tourism since the pandemic began.

Travel firms are still reporting a surge in bookings, with Italy (Rome, pictured) proving popular. Demand is high for escorted tours, too, especially with solo travellers who might have grown weary of their own company.

Our cover story should throw up tempting ideas for those keen to travel with people they don’t know, and we’re focusing on firms that don’t penalise single travellers.