How to travel safely this summer
The summer holiday season is upon us and many are planning to either travel abroad to enjoy some beach and sun. But with many popular destinations putting a differing restriction you will need to plan your trip carefully and navigate through the complex entry requirements.
Pick a destination
The first obvious thing to plan is to pick a destination, some destinations would not allow you into their country if you come from certain red-list countries. So the best advice is check the entry requirement for your chosen destination, gov.uk is a good place to start. Countries welcoming Brits are Portugal, Spain, Malta and Greece but with some conditions.
Take a pre-departure or fit to fly test
Most destinations now require a negative COVID-19 test before entering their country. You will need to arrange your test from one of the approved travel testing companies such as Home2Lab (https://home2lab.co.uk), you will need to undertake this test at least 72 hours before departure.
The gold standard of these tests are called RT-PCR (https://home2lab.co.uk/products/same-day-rt-pcr-test-with-fit-to-fly-by-midnight) which all countries accept as an entry COVID-19 test . These tests are typically analyzed by a laboratory and results are back within 5-48 hours depending on the service you choose.
The next type of tests are called Rapid-Antigen and these tests can detect specific proteins (antigens) on the surface of the COVID-19 virus. Results are typically available within 15 minutes.
While on holiday
Experts recommend maintaining social distance and avoiding crowded places. Also to follow the hand, face and space guidelines by the UK government.
As long as you plan your activities carefully you can enjoy your international holiday safely and more importantly have fun too!
Returning back to UK
You need to check which list your destination is on, if your are returning from a green list country you need to purchase an international arrival pcr test (https://home2lab.co.uk/products/day-2-only-test-green-list-countries-government-approved) and take the test on your second day of arrival.
If you are returning from an amber list country you need to purchase an amber list test kit from an approved testing company, the kit contains two tests which need to be taken on your second and eighth day of arrival. If you have not been fully vaccinated you will need to self isolate for 10 days, but fter 19 July you will not need to self isolate if you have been fully vaccinated.
If you don't want to self-isolate for the full 10 days, you can purchase an extra kit called Test to Release which you can take on day five of arrival. If the results of this test are negative you can end your isolation on day 5.
The important thing is to purchase your kit before departing back since UK border officials will not allow you to enter the country without proof that you have bought a valid kit from a recognized company. They will also require you to present a unique reference number that you can use on your passenger locator form.
Home2Lab is one company which the UK Government accept as day 2 only, day 2 & 8 and test to release provider.
