Air fares to amber countries skyrocket following vaccination announcement

Air fares to come key amber list destinations have skyrocketed following the transport secretary’s announcement that fully vaccinated Britons will no longer have to quarantine from 19 July.

Grant Shapps announced the move, which will see the rules relaxed for double jabbed amber list arrivals to the UK, on 8 July.

The easing of restrictions means British travellers can visit a range of tourism favourites, such as France, Spain and Greece, and face only minor restrictions – two Covid tests, the same as green list arrivals – upon their return.

Prior to the announcement, The Independent collected a random sample of flight prices for key holiday spots and compared them with the fares quoted after the forthcoming rule change was confirmed.

While some stayed the same or saw modest increases, others more than doubled in the hours following the announcement.

For example, the price of a British Airways one-way flight from Heathrow to Nice, France on 20 July – the day after the changes come into effect – now costs over twice as much, jumping from £160 to £361.

BA’s Heathrow to Malaga, Spain, service on 20 July swiftly increased by £54, from £170 to £224.

Meanwhile, post-announcement, easyJet appeared to quickly add an extra flight from Gatwick to Athens, Greece, on 23 July (previously only services on 18 and 25 July were available). The price was £505.99 – more than double the cost of the same flight departing the day before the rules change on 18 July, currently on sale for £218.99.

However, Ryanair’s low fares remain mostly unchanged for the moment, with one-way flights to Venice, Faro and Corfu on or after 19 July priced at £4.99, £9.99 and £12.99 respectively.

As appetite grows for international travel now that double-jabbed passengers face more lenient regulations, it’s likely that airlines will lay on more services to cater for demand.

Jet2.com has announced it will be restarting flights and holidays to all amber list destinations from 19 July onwards in response to the news.