The Telegraph
In case you missed it, until Britain’s latest lockdown is over – whenever that might be – holidays are banned. After lockdown, if the current travel rules remain in place, a holiday will involve between five and 10 days of self-isolation when you get home, and as many as three Covid tests (one before you depart, one during your trip, and another – if you want to reduce your quarantine period – when you return). After months stuck at home, the prospect of a holiday is keeping many people sane, but unless the restrictions are relaxed, millions of Britons – those unable to work from home, for example, or without the resources to pay in the region of £150 per test – will simply be unable to travel. The only cause for optimism is the vaccine. Nick Trend, Telegraph Travel’s consumer expert, says: “If everything goes well with the vaccination programme, then it seems quite possible that the virus will be reasonably under control in this country by Easter – or at least that deaths and hospitalisations will have dramatically reduced. So – fingers crossed – there is a good chance that we will be free to travel by then. The priority list for the Covid vaccines - and how you will be contacted There are two big questions, however. “Firstly, will fears over new Covid variants have been allayed sufficiently to reestablish quarantine-free travel? Not many Britons will be willing or able to leave the country if it means a 10-day period of isolation when they return,” says Nick. “Secondly, how many countries will be open to us? Some of the best chances are likely to be countries which are most dependent on UK tourists: Spain, Greece and Turkey, for example [see below for more suggestions].” Testing is likely to remain for many months to come, but it seems increasingly likely that some sort of vaccination certificate will be established to supplement, or perhaps eventually replace, this requirement. As for summer, Nick is confident that holidays will be possible. He says: “I think we have good grounds for optimism that travel will be possible, and that most key destinations, certainly in Europe, will be open to us.” Where to book for your summer holiday? The below list comes with significant caveats: anything can change and, right now, no holiday you book is guaranteed to go ahead. If the last ten months are anything to go by, there will be nothing smooth about the recommencement of international holidays. If you do book, protect yourself by going with a tour operator with an airtight cancellation or rebooking policy – and keep everything crossed. Long-haul A Caribbean island Over the last six months, the Caribbean has been the most reliable corner of the world when it comes to holiday options for Britons. Prior to the Government scrapping all travel corridors, there were eight Caribbean islands welcoming British travellers, including the likes of Barbados, Cuba, St Lucia and Antigua. All require testing prior to departure or on arrival, or both, which has become the norm across the world, although it is not impossible that the islands will start accepting some kind of vaccination certificate as an alternative to a negative test.
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