Tour operators are scrambling to rearrange Swiss skiing holidays after the country joined Spain in tightening travel restrictions amid concerns about the spread of the Omicron Covid variant.
The skiing holidays in the Swiss Alps were ruined by Switzerland's 10 day quark for new arrivals. British travellers will be affected by Spain's ban on non-vaccinated arrivals from December 1.
Israel was expected to ban foreign visitors for a fortnight from Monday.
Tour operators warned a new testing regime for arrivals to the UK expected to come into effect early this week was a huge blow for travel businesses.
All arrivals to the UK must take a day two test and self-isolate until they get a negative result, Boris Johnson said on Saturday. If a family of four wanted a rapid test so they could leave within a day, that would increase their holiday cost by about 400 dollars. The measures will be reviewed in three weeks.
Thomas Cook, the UK's largest tour operator, said sales of holidays on Saturday were at the same level as previous weeks despite running discounts in a Black Friday sale. It is expecting a fall in consumer confidence after Johnson's announcement. On Sunday it was contacting customers with booked Swiss skiing holidays to rearrange or move the holiday to next year.
The timing of the new UK restrictions is bad for the travel industry as the coming weeks up until the end of January are considered the key period for selling holidays for next year, and operators fear the uncertainty about the impact of the new virus strain will cause a bookings slump. The difficulties are worsened by the tougher rules set out by Spain.
Customers who do not wish to travel and are due to travel up to and including 13 December can change their holiday fee-free using the Crystal Ski Holidays free changes policy. If the restrictions are still in place, we will cancel holidays and customers will get a full refund within 14 days.
Customers can change their flights without paying a fee up to two hours before departure. Even if their flights are still operating, EasyJet still offers a market-leading refund policy for those impacted by travel bans across Europe, which means that they can receive a voucher or free transfer at a later date.
The airline said that its flying programme was operating as normal, but that it would continue to monitor the situation closely.
The changes will add cost to people's holidays which will undoubtedly impact consumer demand and hold back the industry's recovery, so it's vital that this decision is kept under careful review and restrictions are lifted promptly if it becomes clear there is not a risk. The travel businesses have been the hardest hit by the Pandemic and the government must now consider offering tailored support.
Spain announced on Saturday that people arriving from the UK would need to show proof of vaccination in order to enter the EU. Evidence of a negative test result will no longer suffice.
The official announcement suggests there may be an exemption for children. The new policy covers people with a vaccination certificate recognised by the health ministry, as well as accompanying minor to whom the health ministry extends the effects of the decision.
The British embassy in Dublin confirmed that people from Ireland, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man and Great Britain will not have to have a test for the H1N1 flu.
The exemption for travellers from the Common Travel Area will not apply if they have been outside the area in the last 10 days.
