Holidays to Spain could be delayed ‘until end of summer’, Spanish PM says
Britons hoping to escape to Spain will have to wait until 70% of the country is vaccinated, the country’s PM has said
(AP)Britons hoping to escape to Spain will have to wait until 70% of the country is vaccinated, the country’s PM has said.
The news comes as the holiday destination reported its highest daily number of coronavirus infections yet on Thursday, recording 44,357 cases.
A further 404 deaths were also reported, taking the country's total to 55,041 deaths and 2.5 million cases.
Although flights to the country have been suspended by the UK government until February 2 due to the new Covid strain, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has reportedly said they are working to ensure Spain is better prepared to receive international tourists when travel bans are lifted.
Speaking at a meeting of the World Tourism Organisation in Madrid, Mr Sánchez said he wants to vaccinate the majority of the population before opening the country back up to international visitors.
He said: "Our internal plan is to promote a strategy that includes vaccination of the Spanish population at the highest possible rate.
"We are already the ninth country in the world in the vaccination process and one of the first countries in Europe.
"And we are going to advance with the vaccination at the highest rate until reaching 70 per cent of the population with immunity by the end of the summer."
It will massively plunge the country’s tourism sector, which closed its worst year since the 1970s in 2020 with revenues falling by more than 75%.
The Balearic Island tourist board told the Sun Online Travel they hope to have a "positive" summer season due to the vaccine roll out.
They added: "We are optimistic now that the vaccine is being rolled out both in the UK and in Spain so restrictions can soon be relaxed and travel can be reinstated.
"Given our proximity to the UK , the extensive network of UK flight connections to the islands and our long and positive shared tourism history, we feel very confident that we will have a positive 2021 summer season."
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