Above us only sky

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [View in browser]( [The Independent]( [Travel] Simon Calder’s Travel Week [Simon Calder]( Written by Simon Calder | July 09, 2021 In 1994, I took the long and moderately winding road that leads from central Liverpool to the city's airport. In those days you could fly anywhere you wanted from the banks of the Mersey so long as it was the Isle of Man, all of 89 miles away. Conveniently, that happened to be my destination: [my mission was to hitchhike around the island's TT circuit](. Soon afterwards the budget airlines arrived in eastern Liverpool. And there, beneath the blue suburban skies, Liverpool airport blossomed. Twenty years ago this week, Yoko Ono gave her blessing for the airport to be renamed Liverpool John Lennon in honour of her late husband. "Above us only sky," a line from his song Imagine, became the slogan for the airport. For the following two decades, the Beatles legend enticed tourists to Merseyside, while the three low-cost giants of European aviation – easyJet, Ryanair and Wizz Air – battled it out for the hearts and wallets of northwest England's travellers. All the lonely people: Liverpool John Lennon Airport, 8 July 2021 Yesterday, I returned to see what the coronavirus pandemic had done to an airport that – unlike Manchester and Heathrow – has very little business or long-haul VFR (visiting friends and relatives) traffic. At 6am on a normal July morning, the hub would be a hubbub of activity. Instead I could count the passenger on the thumb of one hand – and imagine all the people who would have loved to have been there. A handwritten sign issued the instructions for destinations from Bulgaria ("PCR or vaccine cert") to Ireland ("PCR test only, no NHS"). Destination roulette: the roll-call of certification for nine Ryanair destinations from Liverpool Airports have a business model which is fabulous when times are good but unforgiving when demand collapses: very high fixed costs and very low marginal costs. In other words, it costs a fortune to have fire cover and security and air-traffic control in place whether one flight a day takes off, or 100 – the usual for the summer at Liverpool John Lennon Airport. Yesterday there were about 20 departures, including a couple to the Isle of Man. I could have returned to the island, but only by showing a vaccination certificate – this summer's must-have. Despite the ethical problems that a jabbed-and-jabbed-not society raises, I hope the escape route provided by vaccination boosts the fortunes of a great city's airport. Destination of the week: San Andrés y Providencia Providencia island, a fragment of Colombia in the Caribbean (Photograph courtesy of Parisnerepondplus) Elsewhere in the world, new flight route announcements are coming thick and fast. My favourite this week: a link between Miami and the Caribbean island of San Andrés island. Flights start on 1 December on American Airlines, with easy connections by then (I hope) from the UK to Florida. In case you are struggling to place San Andrés: it is a fragment of Colombia floating off the coast of Nicaragua and considerably closer to Havana than it is to Bogota. The main attraction for some: alluring beaches fringed with shacks selling fresh fish; for others, the duty-free status that sees departing passengers carrying implausibly bulky cabin baggage in the shape of household appliances. But for anyone looking for the ultimate desert isle, San Andrés is mother ship for tiny Providencia: even further from the Colombian mainland, and a tranquil escape from the troubling realities of the 21st century. Deals of the week: Greece and Wales - Ryanair celebrated its 36th birthday yesterday. While Gatwick to Waterford – the original route – no longer features on the network of Europe’s biggest budget airline, Stansted to Athens still does. For a cut-price unlocking of some of your holiday dreams (for jabbed travellers at least) a return fare of £69 is available for departure on 11 August for a fortnight. - For the same price – £69 – you can buy an Explore South Wales Pass, valid for four days' travel within an eight-day spell on trains and buses in the lower half of the nation. And 16-25, Two Together, Disabled Persons or Senior railcards cut one-third from the cost. Question of the week: Best way back from NZ? Question: I have friends who are returning from New Zealand via Singapore and Amsterdam. They will only be in transit lounges during changes. They've both been double vaccinated in NZ. Must they isolate when they arrive? Answer: New Zealand and Singapore are, unlike almost all of the rest of the world, on the UK’s green list. No self-isolation is required on arrival. But the UK's quarantine rules apply to the highest risk level location on the journey. In this case, that's the Netherlands – on the amber list. Even though your friends have been double-jabbed in New Zealand, their vaccinations will count for nothing in the UK. Swerving amber list quarantine (from 19 July) is available only for people who were vaccinated by the NHS in the UK. Stories you might like [Simon Calder discusses travelling after May 17]( [Simon Calder discusses travelling after May 17]( [Quarantine set to be dropped for fully vaccinated arrivals - follow travel live]( Quarantine set to be dropped for fully vaccinated arrivals - follow travel live]( More stories [Vaccination vacations: how being jabbed will ease travel restrictions for millions]( Vaccination vacations: how being jabbed will ease travel restrictions for millions]( [Travel industry welcomes ‘double jab’ announcement – but urges end to PCR tests]( Travel industry welcomes ‘double jab’ announcement – but urges end to PCR tests]( Other newsletters you might like [Adam Forrest]( Inside Politics Every weekday, 8am (UK time) Written by Adam Forrest [Join now >]( [Joe Sommerlad]( Daily News Briefing Every weekday, 8am (UK time) Written by Joe Sommerlad [Join now >]( Let me know your thoughts on Twitter [@SimonCalder](. 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