First minister Mark Drakeford has confirmed international travel will resume from Monday (17 May), but said – like in England and Scotland – "extra safeguards" would be in place to guard against new variants of Covid-19.
The government said from Monday 24 May, paper-based evidence of vaccination status would be available to people in Wales who have had two vaccine doses and need to urgently travel to a country that requires proof of Covid vaccination.
"However, the Welsh government continues to advise people to only travel abroad for essential purposes," it said in a statement. Wales’s transition to Covid alert level two will be reviewed in three weeks’ time, but this review will not consider measures concerning international travel.
Earlier this week, the Welsh government announced additional financial support for businesses still affected by coronavirus restrictions; they will be able to claim up an additional £25,000 support to help meet ongoing costs.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast on Friday (14 May), Drakeford said the government’s advice on travel was not a rule as it would be "unenforceable". He did, however, urge people to do everything in their power to avoid importing new Covid-19 variants.
"We know most people who travel from Wales will be doing it from Bristol, Manchester [or] London, so once those airports are open and travel across the UK is allowed, then people from Wales will be able to travel," said Drakeford, who added there were "fantastic opportunities" to holiday in Wales this summer.
He said the extra safeguards and assistance promised by the government, which will include access to additional test, would be available to people returning from countries where their green list status was "more marginal" such as Portugal and Israel.
Wales’s transition to Covid alert level two would allow indoor hospitality and entertainment venues reopen from Monday.
