Going green? Your problems could be only just beginning

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [View in browser]( [The Independent]( [Travel] Simon Calder’s Travel Week [Simon Calder]( Written by Simon Calder | July 02, 2021 The main summer holiday season is under way, at least in theory. July and August are normally peak months for the holiday industry. But this high season begins in the strangest of circumstances, with just a fraction of the usual summer sun destinations on [the UK’s quarantine-free “green list”](. And with coronavirus case numbers soaring across the four nations of the United Kingdom, barriers are going up across Europe – with England fans keen to support their team in Rome unable to overcome Italy's new quarantine rules. The basilica of Christ the King in Paola, which presides over central Malta Malta is the sole unconditional addition to the UK’s quarantine-free “green list”. The other isles added a week ago, including Spain's Balearic Islands, Madeira and a scattering in the Caribbean, are on the "green watchlist": they could be moved back to "amber" with little warning, requiring returning travellers to self-isolate at home. Yet the UK's move to open up to Malta coincided with the Mediterranean nation moving the United Kingdom to its red list. On Wednesday [I found myself writing](: "Only fully vaccinated travellers with a letter of confirmation from the NHS are allowed to visit, along with unvaccinated under-12s." The official bulletin stressed that neither the NHS digital app nor a print-out from it would be acceptable. At almost zero notice, eager passengers were told they must supply a document that is clunky and slow to obtain in England, Wales and Scotland – and, in Northern Ireland, does not yet actually exist. By Thursday afternoon, [the Maltese government had made a complete U-turn](, accepting proof on the NHS app, or a download from it. Green flag – but Ibiza, along with the rest of the Balearics, is only on the UK's 'green watchlist' Next it was the turn of Spain to cause a kerfuffle. From today, [unvaccinated British visitors must provide a negative test result](. Halfway through Thursday afternoon, the tourist board said a quick, cheap lateral flow test would not be allowed – leaving unjabbed Brits to find a PCR or Lamp test at short notice. Never has summer seemed so stressful for the traveller. And now on Friday morning, a headline in the Telegraph reads: "European holidays could be off limits to 5m Britons given Indian-made AstraZeneca jab." As the proud owner of one vaccine made Europe and another in India, I hope this turns out to be a non-story about the wrong kind of jabs. Destination of the week: Vigo Sun blessed: a mural in the far western city of Vigo in Spain While travel paralysis continues in the UK, new links are opening up across Europe. The July edition of the [European Rail Timetable]( reveals that mainland Spain's westernmost city has a new fast link from the capital: the 600km trip journey has accelerated to just over five hours. The spectacular journey into the wild northwest of Spain delivers you to a gritty, cultured city. [Vigo]( was where the Roman Empire met the ocean. In the 19th century, the port became the main transatlantic departure point for the nation. Jules Verne featured the city in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, and is himself commemorated in a bronze sculpture: perched on the legs of a giant squid. Talking of which, Vigo has arguably the finest seafood in Spain. You can combine it easily with Portugal's second city, Porto, thanks to the Celta train that runs scenically between them. At present both Spain and Portugal are on the "amber list," requiring 10 days of self-isolation when you return to the UK. But give it a few weeks ... Deals of the week: - With travel restrictions continuing to blight the outlook for airlines, bargains abound for people prepared to take a chance on locations turning "green" – meaning no quarantine is demanded on return to the UK. France is a prime candidate, and so long as Britain's soaring Covid rates do not scupper the trip, you can commit now for a week in sunny Beziers in southwest France for just £26 return from London Stansted on Ryanair – departing 3 September, coming back a week later. - The longer that ludicrous anomalies in the British rail fares system persist, the more I shall highlight entirely legal ways to exploit them – particularly for walk-up, no advance purchase tickets. If the 170-mile trip from Edinburgh to Lancaster costs £44.10 on TransPennine Express, how much extra does it cost to stay on for an extra 21 miles to Preston? Er, £6.40 less. The train terminates at Manchester Airport. If that is your final destination, just buy two separate tickets – one to Preston and the next from there to the airport – to save 40 per cent. Stay on board, smug in the knowledge you have saved £33 on the normal walk-up price from Edinburgh. Question of the week: How safe are the Balearics Question: We are flying to Mallorca on Saturday, returning on 13 July. Do you think it will stay "green" until then? The Balearics numbers seem to be going up. Could it even turn red? Answer: The next review of the traffic light system is due on 15 July, after you return. But Mallorca and the rest of the Balearic Islands are on the green watch list, meaning quarantine can be re-imposed at any time. The Covid numbers in Mallorca (as well as Ibiza) aren't looking great. The island certainly won't turn red, but it may go amber. I predict, though, you will get two or three days warning to get home without having to quarantine. 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