UK citizens not yet fully vaccinated against Covid-19 can now travel to the country on the basis of a recent negative antigen test, as can youngsters aged 12-18. This news is the incentive, agents tell TTG, that wavering families have been needing to make bookings.

“Spain easing its Covid-19 entry requirements has already had an effect – people are ringing us to double-check the rules and that they can book it,” said Idle Travel’s Tony Mann. “That’s good for us, the Med’s our biggest seller. Spain doing what it’s doing means we’ve got more places to sell. It will increase the number of people looking to travel imminently, as it’s a popular destination for last-minute bookings.”

It’s not before time; EU travellers have enjoyed less restricted access to Spain for months, a fact underlined by statistics from Cirium that show global flight capacity to the country is at 93% of pre-pandemic levels. Unusually, though, it’s the Brits who are the last to the beach.

At the Spanish National Tourist Office, there’s a sigh of relief. “We’ve seen a jump in demand this week,” UK director Manuel Butler told TTG days after the rules were relaxed.

Butler said early indications – bookings, flight sales and internet searches – showed Spain was “plus or minus 3%” compared with summer 2019. “We think the situation will improve and we will match or be above summer 2019,” he said.

Butler added that while demand was high for the Balearics and Canaries, there remained capacity in mainland Spain. “We are by far the biggest bed suppliers in the Mediterranean, we have enough to welcome any Briton that wants to holiday in Spain,” he said.

Pent-up demand should signal a flood of late sales. Simon Cooper, chief executive of On the Beach, told TTG he felt Spain’s restrictions had held sales back, characterising demand as “sluggish” – but added: “I think we will see strong availability in the lates market.”

It’s a safe bet. People’s fond memories of pre-pandemic holidays to Spain mean it is entrenched in the minds of millions, and its halo appears undiminished – 92% of previous visitors described it as “good value” in a new Post Office Money survey, putting it top of a list including cheaper destinations such as Bulgaria.

In Scotland, Thorne Travel’s Shona Thorne is another who saw an immediate spike in sales. “We’ve definitely doubled our bookings to Spain,” she said. “Before, people were coming in with a view they could only go to certain places because they had children. Now we’ve had a lot more confidence and taken a lot more last-minute bookings for June and July for families, which has been fabulous.”

Karen Marin Reyes from Newport’s La Vida Travel added: “We’re taking a lot of late bookings now, which is brilliant. We’re very pleased this has happened.”

Seeing the light?

As always, there are negative factors hampering travel sales in general, with Marin Reyes citing airport queues as a big issue. “They’re the biggest concern we’re getting from customers. Hopefully they [airports] will be hiring more staff.”

Idle Travel’s Tony Mann also mentioned delays, but said customers were not put off. He added: “In general, the cost-of-living issue is not affecting us. Everybody mentions it, but what I’m seeing in terms of price and spend is what I’d normally have seen in 2019. No one is saying, ‘we can’t afford it’. Our biggest issue is getting through to operators, it’s horrendous; sometimes we’re on hold for two to three hours.”

Triangle Travel’s Rob Kenton described summer as “good”, but felt the market was generally a little cautious: “I don’t think people are feeling [the cost-of- living pinch] in their pay packets but I think there’s so much talk about it they’re just taking a step back.”

Broadly, agents remain positive about the summer. “Bookings in general are looking very good – this month we are on the same figures as May 2019,” said Deben Travel’s Lee Hunt.

It’s taken two years, but the industry is finally starting to see the light – and with the return of Spain, the fiesta really has started.