During the pandemic, the government has been adding or removing countries from its travel corridors almost every week.
Often, this has left some holidaymakers scrambling to get back to the UK in time in a bid to avoid quarantine.
At the same time, the Foreign Office has usually changed its advice to be against non-essential travel to the affected countries, which comes with its own repercussions such as invalidating your travel insurance.
However, it's important for travellers to note; the government's travel corridors and travel advice are not the same thing.
It's a little confusing, so we've shed some light with a guide explaining the difference and what it means for your holidays...
The key difference
Travel corridors are specifically related to quarantine , and determining if you'll need to self-isolate when returning from a country. This list is usually determined by the Department of Transport.
Travel advice looks at wider factors affecting travel , for example taking into account natural disasters and political unrest. This advice has always been around long before the pandemic, although this year the risk of coronavirus has obviously also been considered. The advice is determined by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
What it means for your holidays
If you plan a holiday, it's the FCDO advice that affects whether you can actually go. The travel corridors list determines if you will need to quarantine when you return to the UK.
Usually, when destinations are added or removed to travel corridors, the FCDO has changed its advice accordingly.
For example, when a country has been removed from the travel corridors list, the FCDO has changed its advice to be against all non-essential travel. (Which means cancelled holidays and invalidated travel insurance).
However, it's important to note; just because a country is in the travel corridors, that doesn't automatically mean you can travel there. Your holiday is still dependent on what the FCDO advice says.
Still, it's been the common case that for countries where Brits could travel without restrictions pre-pandemic, the travel corridors and travel advice so far have gone hand in hand.
