Jet2holidays has said its bookings doubled in less than 24 hours after the government’s confirmation on Thursday that it was slashing its red list to just seven countries.
Although the changes affect primarily long-haul destinations, the short-haul operator said the reaction demonstrated customers’ belief that the cuts and changes to testing requirements represented “the genuine reopening of international travel”.
Steve Heapy, chief executive of Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, said: “Bookings have been increasing significantly in recent weeks; however customers clearly view this latest announcement as the genuine reopening of international travel.
“Holiday bookings have doubled since the red list was cut, which shows just how assured customers now feel. After so much uncertainty, the cutting of the red list, on top of recent positive news, has clearly given customers the confidence to book the well-deserved holiday that they have been waiting for.”
Heapy said bookings were up across all seasons, with October including half-term, winter and summer 2022 all seeing strong growth.
He added: “ That is an extremely encouraging trend which tells us that the enormous pent-up demand is translating into bookings.
“We understand that the UK government will shortly confirm when testing changes are to come into force, enabling double-vaccinated customers to take a lateral flow test after returning to the UK, instead of a costly PCR test.
“We look forward to this update which we know will give holidaymakers even more to be happy about.”