Jet2, Ryanair, easyJet and TUI flight update

Hoping for a holiday abroad this summer?

The Government has said foreign flights might be on the cards after May 17 – but what are airlines saying? And what happens if you book a flight that can’t go ahead due to Covid-19 rules?

We know that there’ll be a traffic light system in place, ranking the safety of holiday destinations, and we know there will be different quarantine and testing rules for each of the three categories.

Most holidaymakers will be aiming to head for ‘green’ countries, which would mean they wouldn’t have to self isolate after getting home. But with the categories not published until May, will you be able to change or cancel your flight if your destination isn’t green?

easyJet

Flights and holidays won’t restart with easyJet until at least May 17.

The airline offers some flexibility in terms of the traffic light system. It says if you have a holiday booked this summer that is impacted by a lockdown travel ban or mandatory hotel quarantine (which would be the case with red list destinations), they offer a number of options even if flights are going ahead.

Passengers can:

• Amend to a new flight at a later date
• Receive a flight voucher
• Request a full refund

This applies to flights and holidays departing up to and including September 30.

You can find out more on easyjet.com.

Jet2

Jet2 are being a bit more cautious, and won’t resume flights and holidays until June 24. The holiday firm has said it will automatically refund customers who’ve had trips cancelled because of this, and then get in touch regarding bookings for later in the year.

As for the traffic light system and where they’ll be flying to, the company said: ” We’re now waiting for the UK Government and its Global Travel Taskforce to confirm which destinations fall into the green, amber or red categories of the new traffic light system – and the travel requirements for each country to be finalised.”

You can get more information on jet2holidays.com.

TUI

TUI is looking to restart holidays from May 17 at the earliest, and it won’t be offering any flights or packages to destinations that are on the red list.

TUI Airways will only be flying from four airports – Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol – between 17 and 27 May.

For green and amber destinations, TUI has pledged;

• Free amends on holidays if before departure you find out you’ll need to quarantine on your return to the UK
• Free amends on holidays if you’re unable to travel due to new testing or vaccination requirements

The company currently offers a free change policy on all bookings up to the end of August, so you can amend your holiday up to 14 days before your departure.

The firm has also cancelled all holidays to Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Bulgaria, Croatia, Tunisia, Egypt and Cape Verde due to depart before 7 June. Affected passengers are being offered a full refund, or the option to rebook for a later date with a ‘booking incentive’.

You can find out more on tui.co.uk.

Ryanair

Ryanair has continued to offer some flights during the pandemic but is likely to start running more over the summer.

Ryanair says: “We know your plans may change, so we’ve dropped our flight change fees for all new bookings made before 30 June 2021, for travel before 31 October 2021.

“You can now make up to two flight changes for travel by 31 October 2021. This gives you complete flexibility and peace of mind.”

This applied to bookings made after June 10 last year, and means you could alter your flight for free if your destination is on the red list.

You can find out more on ryanair.com.