Aer Lingus has launched a flash sale on transatlantic flights this summer following the lifting of US pre-departure Covid test requirements.
The Irish carrier is cutting £100 off return economy flights and £200 off return business class flights for travel from July through to September when booked by June 17.
The deal covers direct services from Manchester to Orlando and New York JFK and 13 routes from Dublin to US cities.
The offer came as the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office confirmed that pre-departure testing was no longer required for passengers flying to the US from yesterday (Sunday). However, proof of Covid-19 vaccination is still required to enter the US.
The US attracts around 3.8 million British travellers in a normal year.
World Travel & Tourism Council president and chief executive Julia Simpson joined industry figures in welcoming the decision by the US president Joe Biden to lift the “damaging testing requirement for travellers”.
She added: “It will provide much-needed relief to the embattled sector. The long-term recovery of US travel and tourism now looks positive, with our projections showing that a fully recovered sector will create more than six million new jobs over the next 10 years.
“But short term, the measure caused untold damage to an already devastated sector as international visitor spending has been so low over the past two years.”
Advantage Travel partnership chief executive Julia Lo Bue-Said said it was “extremely positive” that onerous tests had been removed, adding: “This is particularly important for business travellers, families looking to get away over the summer and for American visitors travelling internationally.”
Virgin Atlantic chief commercial officer Juha Jarvinen said: “There are some people in the US who are worried about travelling to the UK and Europe because they don’t want to get stuck if they test positive, so it will have a positive impact from that perspective.
“But it will also have a positive impact in the UK as testing is an extra hurdle and an extra cost, so getting it removed will give us a further boost.
“It remains to be seen how big that boost will be, but we definitely feel it’s going to be positive.”
Business Travel Association chief executive Clive Wratten said: “It is welcome to see the US move to end all Covid-19 restrictions. This needs to be a clarion call for all countries to remove the remaining restrictions and encourage international travel once more.
“All travel facilitators around the world need to help build customer confidence and deliver the travelling experience necessary for our sector’s recovery.”
Visit USA Association (UK) chair Julie Greenhill said: “This is the positive news that we and our membership has been campaigning for over the last few months.
“The decision to rescind the need for pre-departure testing will make a trip to the USA much more desirable and affordable for the UK consumer.
“The announcement will assist in the recovery of the UK to USA travel industry and our tour operator and airline members are starting to see an uptick in confirmed bookings for the second half of this year and for 2023.”
Irish Travel Agents Association chief executive Pat Dawson said: “The easing of entry requirements into the United States is greatly welcomed throughout the travel industry.
“There is a big demand for US travel, especially for families travelling to visit family and friends that they have not seen since before the pandemic to destinations or to such destinations as Orlando or the west coast.”
He added: “With Dublin airport and the [Irish] Passport Office resolving issues from the pandemic coupled with the United States easing of entry requirements, all barriers for travelling to the US are more or less now gone. This is a very positive step.”
American Society of Travel Advisors president and chief executive Zane Kerby said testing rule by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had been standing in the way of industry recovery “for too long”.
He added: “Since the start of the year, Aata has been engaged in a multi-layered advocacy campaign to get to this point, including direct lobbying of Congress and Administration officials, grassroots action and pressure through national and local media.
“We commend the Biden administration for taking this long-overdue. While plenty of challenges remain in terms of rebuilding the travel agency business, today is a great day.”