Low cost airline Ryanair has urged Brits to book a summer holiday abroad after announcing plans to restart flights to Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece and Cyprus from 1 July.
The company announced the news today after the Spanish government announced yesterday that it would welcome tourists from 1 July with no quarantine.
After airlines were globally grounded due to the coronavirus pandemic, the travel industry is now working towards restarting flights and holidays.
Now Ryanair has said it will be running daily flights from the UK and Ireland to key holiday spots and has launched a sale to encourage travellers to book to fly in July and August.
Ryanair’s CEO Eddie Wilson said: “After 4 months of lockdown, we welcome these moves by Governments in Italy, Greece, Portugal, Spain and Cyprus to open their borders, remove travel restrictions and scrap ineffective quarantines.
"Irish and British families, who have been subject to lockdown for the last 10 weeks, can now look forward to booking their much needed family holiday to Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and other Mediterranean destinations, for July & Aug before the schools return in Sept.
"Ryanair will be offering up to 1,000 daily flights from 1 July, and we have a range of low fare seat sales, perfect for that summer getaway, which we know many parents and their kids will be looking forward to as we move out of lockdown and into the school holidays.
"All Ryanair flights will operate with new health guidelines in place, which will require all passengers (and Ryanair crews) to wear face masks at all times in the airport terminals and on board our aircraft, in compliance with EU guidelines.
"We look forward to welcoming millions of Ryanair passengers and their families back on board, and flying them on holiday as Europe’s economies begin to recover from these difficult recent lockdowns, which have been so successful in reversing the spread of the Covid-19 virus.”
In Portugal, hotels will start reopening on June 1, and beaches will reopen a week later with social distancing rules in place.
Similarly in Greece, some beaches have already reopened, whilst hotels and popular tourist spots will reopen on June 1.
International flights are set to resume on June 15 but only from countries deemed safe.
And Brits may be able to bypass quarantine rules in Greece and Portugal if the UK applies the same rule.
The Italian government is also expected to press for exemption from the UK’s quarantine rule.
Ahead of announcing its flight schedule, Ryanair released guidance on what people should expect when flying.
Passengers will be told that they should check their temperature before going to the airport - and it might be checked again before the flight.
And travellers must wear a face mask or covering at all times.
During flights, the toilets will not be open but passengers can request access.
In a briefing about its precautions, Ryanair said all plane interiors will be professionally cleaned and disinfected on a daily basis.
And that their aircraft is fitted with "air filters" similar to those used in hospital.
Currently, anyone arriving in the UK from June 8 will have to self-isolate for 14 days or risk a £1,000 fine.
The new rules will apply to returning holidaymakers - but will be reviewed every three weeks
On May 22, Home Secretary Priti Patel told the daily Downing Street press conference: “The answer as to why we’re bringing in these measures now is simple: It is to protect that hard-won progress and prevent a devastating resurgence in a second wave of the virus."
Ms Patel said that now the peak has passed, steps to “guard against imported cases” must be imposed.
