Spain plans to welcome foreign tourists by late June
Spain’s transport minister says the country is aiming to welcome back foreign tourists by late June.
However, Jose Luis Abalos has not specified when the country will permit visitors from the UK.
Last week the country imposed a temporary two-week quarantine on all arrivals to avoid a second wave of Covid-19, but Abalos told broadcaster TVE: "From late June, we’ll start the tourism activity, I hope."
Abalos said the quarantine will be phased out as movement gradually increases between Spain’s regions, which are slowly easing their own travel restrictions.
"As soon as we Spaniards can travel to other provinces, foreigners will be able to come to Spain", he said. "We can’t allow foreigners to travel while the Spanish population is confined."
Spain has been one of the nations worst hit by coronavirus, with more than 231,000 cases and 27,600 deaths.
However, on Mondy the number of new deaths reported dropped to 59, the lowest daily number since mid-March when it went into lockdown.
It is desperate to restart its tourism industry, which contributes 12% of GDP.
Pedro Homar, manager of the Palma Tourism Board in Majorca, said: "We are now preparing for tourism to be reinstated as soon as possible as we slowly resume a sense of normality."
While 70% of cities in Spain have begun to ease lockdown restrictions, Barcelona and Madrid remain in the preliminary phase of what the government has called ‘the transition towards the new normality’.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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