Italy is the latest country to be added to England’s travel quarantine list, along with San Marino and Vatican City, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has announced
But the Greek island of Crete has been removed from the list, which means returning travelers don’t have to self-isolate for a fortnight on their return
This brings its seven-day case rate per 100,000 population to 64 – well above the 20 threshold after which the government plans to trigger quarantine conditions, but more than 25 times lower than the UK rate
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No country lost its travel corridor exemptions last week, as the number of domestic cases rises – the UK case rate currently stands at 166
But now there are warnings that the rest of Europe is becoming a ‘no-go zone’ for travelers
Paul Charles, managing director of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said: “Europe and the Mediterranean have almost become no-go zones if you want to avoid quarantine on your return.
« The current quarantine system should now be replaced by an effective traveler screening program, coupled with a very short quarantine period
TRAVEL CORRIDOR UPDATE: We are DELETING ITALY, Vatican City State & San Marino from the #TravelCorridor list However, note that the implementation date is moved to 4 a.m. on SUNDAY 18 October & applies throughout the UK, if you arrive from these destinations you will need to isolate yourself
We are adding CRETE to the #TravelCorridor list this week Starting at 4am on Sunday 18th October if you are arriving from Crete you will no longer need to isolate yourself ALSO THIS WEEK the whole of the UK is now aligned on our advice around all the Greek islands
« It would help business and leisure travel recover as we learn to live with the coronavirus 2020 is a washout for the travel industry and the government needs to focus on a strong recovery for the start of 2021 and beyond «
Changes to the government list of destinations from which arrivals in England do not need to enter quarantine are typically announced every Thursday at 5 p.m. and implemented the following Saturday at 4 a.m. But the quarantine from Italy will arrive at 4 a.m. on Sunday, Mr. Shapps on Twitter
The deletion of Crete from the list applies from the same time The Ministry of Transport said it had changed the status of the Greek island since the risk to the public health of those returning from the destination « has fallen to an acceptable level »
The removal of Italy’s exemption will be another blow to the UK travel industry, as it was one of its last major markets that could be visited without holidaymakers from return are not forced to isolate themselves
Italy last week introduced mandatory coronavirus testing for arriving UK visitors Arrivals from European countries including UK, France and Spain must provide proof of a negative test carried out within 72 hours of travel
Those who are not able to provide proof of a negative result at the border must take a test in Italy
Mark Tanzer, managing director of travel organization Abta, has expressed fears that more travel companies will go bankrupt within weeks due to the pandemic
Case rates are calculated by the PA news agency on the basis of data collected by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control
Italy, UK, San Marino, Quarantine
News from around the world – GB – Italy added to travelers’ quarantine list after record day of cases
