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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Travel
Julie Delahaye

Spain could introduce Covid passports to welcome back tourists as early as May

Spain holidays could be back on the cards for Brits this year as the holiday hotspot is looking to test a new vaccine passport scheme.

The country's tourism minister Maria Reyes Maroto has said that the country could introduce Covid-19 vaccine passports as early as May, she told local media Antena 3 TV, offering a glimmer of hope for the summer holidays.

She had previously said that Spain wanted to be a pioneer in introducing the immunity passports and confirmed her ministry was pursuing the idea.

The Balearic Islands, which include popular holiday destinations Majorca and Ibiza, have already announced they want to be first to welcome foreign tourists back with vaccine passports.

Levante beach in Benidorm (iStock Editorial)

Currently it's illegal for Brits to travel abroad for a holiday but it's hoped that under England's lockdown roadmap foreign travel could resume from May 17, subject to a review by the government's Global Travel Taskforce in April.

Earlier this week, there was more good news for Brits as Greece's tourism minister announced the holiday spot plans to welcome foreign tourists back from May, regardless of their vaccine status. (If you haven't had the vaccine, you'll need to show proof of a negative Covid-19 test to enter).

Meanwhile Cyprus has also announced plans to welcome back vaccinated travellers from May - with no quarantine restrictions either.

Deputy Tourism Minister Savvas Perdios told the semi-official Cyprus News Agency that Brits with the jab would not need a test or have to quarantine.

He said: "We have informed the British government that from May 1 we will facilitate the arrival of British nationals who have been vaccinated ... so they can visit Cyprus without a negative test or needing to quarantine."

Benidorm beaches are divided into social distancing squares (Getty Images)

Of course there's no guarantee yet what the travel landscape could look like for Brits this summer, but if international travel restrictions do lift there are a number of countries that look the most likely to welcome Brits including Cyprus.

In the meantime, a number of countries have already announced that they will welcome back fully vaccinated travellers although it's worth noting that in some cases this may not include UK travellers for the initial phase.

What do you think of the idea of vaccine passports? Let us know in the comments below.

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