UK sources are suggesting that the double-jab announcement by the UK government on Thursday may prompt a price war among Mediterranean destinations. The elimination of quarantine on return (for England from July 19; Northern Ireland, July 26) for travellers who have been vaccinated twice means that there is a broader offer of destinations.
Airlines are scheduling flights from July 19 to amber list destinations, and this is said to be motivating the Greek and Italian tourism sectors to offer incentives - price being the main one.
Price war may be overstating the situation. There is a view that prices for some destinations will come down because airlines and tour operators will add capacity. ABTA are saying that there are currently "very good deals on offer".
But there has also been talk of a rise in prices to match a sudden surge in bookings. This is being disputed by travel analysts, the travel editor of Which? saying that prices do not rise simply because of an easing of travel restrictions. This is because of available capacity and what is still comparatively low demand. As the number of bookings increase, though, then prices may well rise.