Spain reopens to international travelers
From Monday, June 7, travelers who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 will be welcome to enter Spain, no matter which country they are traveling from. The announcement was made by Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez at the Fitur Tourism Fair in Madrid on May 21..
As noted by El Pais, the main rule in place is that travelers from outside the European Union must have received their vaccinations at least 14 days prior to traveling to Spain. They must have received both doses of the vaccine in order to have full protection, or just one jab in the case of the Janssen vaccine.
The acceptable vaccines are those approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the World Health Organization (WHO), including Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Oxford-AstraZeneca and Janssen, as well as the Chinese vaccines Sinopharm and Sinovac-Coronavac.
Spain reopens its borders
The reopening of Spain’s borders will be of particular interest for travelers outside of the European Union, and will include the United States, Latin American countries such as Argentina, Colombia and Mexico and more. This will allow for leisure travel between the countries where there are already strong links with Spain. It will also make way for the reunification of families who have not been able to travel without a justifiable reason.
The reopening of Spain’s borders will also aid in the recovery of long-distance flights, which have been seriously cut back since the COVID-19 pandemic started. This will include connections with several Asian countries, where the WHO-approved Chinese vaccines mentioned above are used, including China, Thailand, the Philippines, India and others.
Problems for UK visitors
A large majority of Spain’s annual visitors reside in the United Kingdom. However, on Thursday, the UK opted to keep all European Union countries, including Spain, on its amber list for travel. Previously, Portugal was on the green list, but has now been taken down to the amber list by the British government. This move is a blow to the UK’s tourism industry that had been hoping for more flexible rules for summer. However, despite hopes that Spain’s Canary and Balearic Islands would be moved up to the green list, the British government has opted to keep them on amber in their “traffic light” system along with mainland Spain.
For this reason, visitors heading back to the UK from Spain and other EU countries will need to take a PCR test prior to returning home, spend 10 days in quarantine on arrival and to then undergo two home COVID-19 tests.
However, when traveling to Spain, UK residents are not required to give proof of a negative COVID-19 test and will not need an essential reason for travel.
Health and safety protocols in Spain
According to the Welcome to Madrid official website, the night-time curfew in Spain has been lifted. However, it is still recommended that indoor gatherings be limited to a total of six persons. Bars and restaurants can serve groups of a maximum six people indoors and eight people outdoors. Luckily, many of Spain’s restaurants have spacious terraces to accommodate diners.
While bars and restaurants were closed during the lockdown and gradually reopened to limited hours, restaurants bars and cafés are now able to open from 6 am to 1 am. Facemasks are to be worn in all public spaces, both indoor and outdoor. The only exceptions are those people doing sports and children under the age of 6. Social distancing rules must be adhered to at all times, at a distance of 2 m (6.5 ft).
Smoking directly outside public places is currently forbidden and can only be done where a 2 m (6.5 ft) distance can be maintained.
Currently, the maximum capacity in most enclosed spaces, including hotels, bars and restaurants, places of worship and sports facilities is 50 percent. Cultural venues, such as museums, theaters, monuments and cinemas, as well as outdoor cafés and restaurants and shopping centers have a limit of 75 percent of the norm. Currently, most night clubs and other late night venues remain closed.
Enjoy a visit to Spain this summer, taking in all the entertainment and cultural offers of Madrid, Barcelona and other major cities. Alternatively, head to the coastal areas like the Costa del Sol, or the Canary and Balearic Islands, where beaches, bars and restaurants are waiting to welcome you.
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