Quarantine-free 'green list' travel may not open up for the US or Europe until late July, an industry expert has warned.
Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said ministers had "sacrificed" the reopening of the travel sector "to protect their own careers".
He said the summer months of June and July would "be lost in travel terms".
There were hopes that destinations such as Spain, France, Italy and the US would be added to the green list ahead of the peak summer holiday season.
But Mr Charles said it was his “clear understanding” that ministers “do not intend to open up travel to mainland Europe or the USA before the end of July”.
“Ministers have fallen into line to protect their future careers and potentially benefit from an upcoming Cabinet reshuffle," he claimed.
"And that means sacrificing the early opening of the overseas travel sector.
“Now thousands of jobs are at risk – as are some airlines and travel firms – because June and July will be lost in travel terms.”
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Mr Charles was among leading figures in the sector who expressed outrage when Portugal was moved to the amber list last week, as it meant no viable major tourist destination was in the green tier.
People arriving in the UK from a green tier country are not required to self-isolate, while amber arrivals must quarantine at home for 10 days.
Mr Charles claims Portugal and other countries such as Malta, Morocco and Grenada should be on the green list but decisions on restrictions are “highly political, not based on data at all”.
He said some ministers including transport secretary Grant Shapps were “in favour of opening up travel sooner”, but were “over-ruled” by the likes of Matt Hancock, home secretary Priti Patel and Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove.
He said members of the government had now "united to focus on reopening the UK by mid-July" once the vaccine roll-out reaches the final cohorts.
“Once the UK has opened up almost completely, then overseas travel will be back on the agenda for the end of July," he claimed.
The government has not confirmed a date for the second travel review, but previously said reviews will take place every three weeks.
That means the next one is expected on Thursday, June 24, with changes likely to come into force early the following week.
The Department of Transport previously said assessments would be based on a range of factors, including the proportion of a population that had been vaccinated, rates of infection, emerging new variants, and access to reliable scientific data and genomic sequencing.
