British holidaymakers gamble on Greece for trips abroad after Spain quarantine

British holidaymakers are gambling on trips to Greece instead of Spain, despite an increase in coronavirus cases in the country. 

The government changed travel advice required people who return from Spain to England to quarantine for two weeks, devastating tourists looking forward to their summer holiday.

But Brits desperate for a foreign break have set their sights on destinations in Greece, such as Crete, Corfu and Santorini, as reported by The Sunday Telegraph.

Previously the most sought after destinations on Skyscanner, a flight booking website, were Ibiza, Barcelona and Malaga, but they have now dropped out of the top 10. 

Jon Thorne, an expert at Skyscanner, said government changes to the quarantine list directly impacted on consumer behaviour. 

He said: ‘The significant drop in searches and bookings to Spain from the UK on Skyscanner last week was a direct reaction to the current restrictions in the UK and uncertainty around travel to and from holiday favourites there. 

‘Over the last few months, we have seen a direct correlation in search and booking data following changes in guidance.’

Greece has seen a relatively low number of Covid-19 cases in comparison with other European countries.

But it did record 121 new cases on Tuesday, which is its highest number since April 22, but still significantly below spikes in France and Spain.  

Appearing on Sky News on Saturday, Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor, warned holidaymakers there was ‘always the risk of disruption to travel plans’. 

Martyn James, a consumer rights expert at Resolver, warned that anyone booking a holiday overseas at the moment was taking a risk.

He added: ‘Any holiday outside of this country booked at the moment carries a risk that you won’t be able to go or that you will have to quarantine on the way back. People going into it should be aware by now.

‘I am advising people to get it in writing that you will be able to move your hotel booking before you go. There is a chance that you won’t get any of your money back.’ 

Italy and Turkey are also proving popular destinations for Brits keen to travel to areas with lower levels of coronavirus infections.  

It comes as Portugal may soon be included in the quarantine-free travel list, if coronavirus cases in the country continue to drop.

The holiday destination favourite could be added to the ‘safe-list’ in weeks meaning British tourists would exempt from the 14-day isolation on their return. 

Portugal was excluded from the list of countries that are exempt from quarantine that was published by the UK Government in July.

The list has since been updated but Portugal has continued to be left off the list of ‘travel corridors’ amid fears at its level of coronavirus infections.

The decision promoted anger from Portuguese officials at the time as Portugal relies heavily on tourism.

Portugal’s Ministry of State and Foreign Affairs said: ‘It is a decision that is neither substantiated nor supported by the facts.’

A Whitehall source told The Sun: ‘Portugal has made a lot of progress but the process of for dropping quarantine is far more gradual, where we monitor progress in weeks rather than days.’

This will likely delay the green-light being given for another two weeks.