Spain reopens for holidays

SPAIN today appealed for British tourists to visit saying their holidays will not be ‘radically’ affected by temperature checks and health forms.

Minister Manuel Muniz insisted Spain is now a ‘particularly safe place’ with coronavirus rates that are ‘among the lowest in the world’.

And he insisted that the decision not to impose any quarantine, even though the UK is forcing incomers from the country to isolate, was based on confidence that the disease is ‘under control’.

The first Britons started arriving in Spain yesterday after Madrid lifted its ban on foreign tourists and opened its beaches in glorious 100 degree-plus heat.

Travel firms have slashed the price of a one-week holiday to £300 after Downing Street signalled ‘travel corridors’ could be introduced to 10 countries from July 4, with no 14-day quarantine on return to the UK.

A small Ryanair fleet is shuttling people to the south of Spain this week. 

People soaking up the sun on Playa de Palma beach yesterday after Spain reopened to tourists.

Tourists arrive at Palma de Mallorca Airport yesterday as the Spanish tourism industry gets back up and running

Spain’s reopening after three months of lockdown comes as travel firms have seized on talk of ‘air bridges,’ and hacked down prices in an effort to tempt families and older passengers into a summer beach break. 

Seven-night package deals are down 34 percent for Prague, 26 percent fo Zante, 16 percent for Venice, 15 percent for Marrakech, 14 percent for Canary Islands, 13 percent for New York, 12 percent for the Balearic Islands and 10 percent for Turkish resorts. 

On BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Mr Muniz played down the UK government’s decision to maintain quarantine – which Spain at one point had threatened to reciprocate. 

‘We have always wanted to open the border as soon as possible,’ he said. ‘The disease is under control across the Spanish territory.’

He added: ‘Spain is now a particularly safe place because we have undergone a very strict quarantine and confinement for a period. Cases in Spain are now amongst the lowest in the world.’

Mr Muniz said tourists coming to the country would face a temperature check, a visual check, and would need to fill out a health form indicating symptoms and any contact with confirmed cases. There would also be a follow up contact over the next fortnight to see whether they have developed symptoms.

Hotels and resorts have put in place ‘protocols’ to minimise the risk of spread, he added.

‘The experience will not be radically different but it will be safer,’ Mr Muniz said.

‘That is a decision that has been made by the British government. I know it is in the process of being reviewed.’

He added: ‘From the point of view of Spain we have always through that we would open our border with the UK at the same time as we did with the rest of European member states….  

‘There was no health reason for us to impose that quarantine on Brits coming in.’

Mr Muniz admitted that there was ‘slight’ concern that daily cases in the UK were still three times those in Spain. 

‘But these are still low numbers of circulation,’ he said.