The sudden change in FCO advice for Spain, including the Balearic and Canary Islands, was a shock and disappointing for the industry. It highlighted that the operating environment for businesses will be unpredictable, especially around Government restrictions, for the time being. 

ABTA is asking the Government for greater clarity on what information it is using to base its decisions on so businesses and customers can themselves make more informed choices as it is so important that the industry gets as much as it can from this summer season. 

To help Members through this uncertain landscape, ABTA has introduced a new FCO exempt countries guide, which illustrates the various mandatory COVID-19 entry requirements, health checks, and quarantine rules for the countries that are exempt from the FCO’s global advisory against all but essential travel.

This is complemented by a new customer information leaflet entitled “Get ready for travel: customer tips and information for going on holiday or travelling abroad” which includes considerations for people preparing to travel.

This week, TTG has launched a new campaign that aims to gain further support from the Government to help our industry, and any steps alongside our own that are successful at raising awareness and facilitating action amongst policy makers should be supported. The asks of the campaign complement many of our own so I would urge Members to also lend their names to #SaveTravel.

ABTA is also launching its latest Member Survey to gather up to date evidence from Members. Please support this work to help our lobbying activity and thank you in advance for providing the insights needed to state our industry’s urgent need for support.

Mark Tanzer, Chief Executive