Bargain flights to countries that have just landed on the green list

AIRLINES are reducing prices for flights to countries that have been put on the green list to attract holidaymakers for a last-minute summer getaway.

Travellers brave enough to venture abroad will be rewarded with cheaper journeys as fares for the most popular destinations have been cut when the country concerned has moved up the Government’s traffic light system.

Travel companies have rushed to switch flight schedules to give priority to green-list destinations in an attempt to reverse the collapse in passenger numbers brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

Trips to Croatia, Germany and Latvia have all fallen in price, according to Skyscanner, a flight-price comparison website.

Germany and Latvia joined the green list today while Croatia was already green, although it is on the watchlist for turning amber.

Air fares to nations that had been rumoured to move to the amber-plus category but remained amber, such as Portugal and Greece, also fell.

Return fares to Spain booked after the announcement rose on average from £74 to £78 but remained far below pre-pandemic levels. However, tickets are going for as little as £9 to Santander on Spain’s north coast. Spain also remained on the amber list.

Gavin Harris of Skyscanner said travel firms were using low prices to help build confidence as people started to travel again and said prices were forecast to remain low.

“This extremely competitive marketplace is fantastic news for travellers looking for good value trips,” he said.

Return tickets to the Spanish hotspots of Alicante, Tenerife and Malaga are all selling at more than a 10 per cent discount compared with before the pandemic.

Rory Boland of Which?, the consumer group, said airlines had a lot of spare capacity as the number of flights remained dramatically reduced, which enabled them to react quickly to any government announcements.

“They add flights, making more seats available, and that pushes prices down.

“Immediately when changes are announced you can see price increases because capacity has not had time to shift, but they tend to fall within a couple of days,” Mr Boland said.

Anyone booking a holiday to a greenlist country should wait for a few days after travel restrictions have changed to get the cheapest flights, he added.

British Airways is adding more flights to its schedule, it announced at the end of last month, after its owner, IAG, reported a £1.7 billion loss for the first half of 2021.

Luis Gallego, IAG’s chief executive, said: “Our focus is on ensuring our operational readiness, so we have the flexibility to capitalise on an environment where there’s evidence of widespread pent-up demand when travel restrictions are lifted.”