Covid Update: Changes confirmed to green, amber and red lists

Travel options increase from Sunday 8th August thanks to shifts in the Travel Traffic Light lists.

Travel is back on this summer and with planned updates every 3 weeks, the choice of travel destinations is multiplying and the holidaymakers are hopeful to their dreams of travel will become a reality.

 

The UK government has given the go-ahead for travel traffic light list changes to come into effect on Sunday 8th August, confirming 7 countries to be added to the green list and making dramatic changes to the amber and red lists.

 

A few key changes:

- British favourite Dubai is finally an option from Sunday, with the UAE moving from Red to Amber. Holidaymakers will no longer face the prospect of a 10-day hotel quarantine

A Breakdown

Changes will be active from 04:00 BST on Sunday. 

No countries are scheduled to be removed from the Green list.

*Hotel quarantine prices will increase in the UK from £1750 to £2285 on 12/08/21

Changes: Red to Amber lists

1. 1. UAE
2. 2. India
3. 3. Qatar
4. 4. Bahrain

This makes returning from these 4 countries much easier for the fully vaccinated, now able to skip hotel quarantine. It’s a double-win for U18s, not having to isolate on arrival into the Uk either.

Requirements are explained in our FAQ 

Changes: Amber to Green lists

1. 1. Austria
2. 2. Germany
3. 3. Latvia
4. 4. Norway
5. 5. Romania
6. 6. Slovenia
7. 7. Slovakia

This change will bring up the total of countries on the green list from 29 to 36 and cater for travellers with a short holiday span needing to arrive home and head straight into working life, adding to the choice of holiday hotspots.

It's important to note that if you arrive in England before then, you must follow the amber list rules.

Changes: Amber to Red lists

1. 1. La Reunion
2. 2. Mayotte
3. 3. Mexico
4. 4. Georgia

We’d recommend giving extra thought to any pre-planned trips to these countries from Sunday. Unfortunately, passengers arriving from these destinations after Sunday will be required to complete a 10-day government-managed hotel quarantine on return to the UK as detailed in the Red List stipulations.

Indicators suggest the shifts aren’t set to be exclusive as the government warns Green Watchlist countries are at imminent risk of moving to Amber. 

France’s removal from the Amber Plus list explained

Travel between England and France will be quarantine-free again for fully vaccinated passengers thanks to losing its “plus” prefix. Not only does this incentivise the public to consider the vaccine, if they haven’t done so already, but also opens up travel to Briton’s favourite summer holiday spots notably Paris, Bordeaux, Nice, and Marseille. 

Impact & Benefits

• - Economic impact - the introduction of additional countries accessible to Britons will significantly increase international spending and provide the travel industry with the boost it so desperately needs

• - Airline promotions - companies such as British Airways have responded to new additions to amber and green list destinations by launching a targeted sale to these destinations.

• - International disputes - Countries remaining unadjusted have expressed frustration in response to keeping Britons’ travel access restricted. Pakistan’s petition has accumulated thousands of signatures in the past 24 hours and  the CEO of Latin American Travel Association’s, Danny Callaghan, has justified expressed anger pointing out “we've seen Mexico added to the red list despite average case rates being significantly lower than the UK over the last couple of weeks.”
• - Great exchange rates - GBP > EUR is at a one year high, so now is a great time to travel to Europe where you will get more holiday cash for your pounds.
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*Those that do not have an approved vaccination certificate are expected to self-isolate at home for 10 days.