Travel industry bets on vaccine passports to draw Brits to Mediterranean

Travel industry bets on vaccine passports to draw Brits to Mediterranean

Thanks to its swift vaccine deployment here, Britain is the only major European country likely to inoculate a large share of working-age adults by the peak season. They may become the first big regional test of digital health credentials in development.

Airlines such as easyJet saw outbound bookings from Britain surge last week as the government raised the prospect of a return to quarantine-free summer travel, and the European Union agreed to develop vaccine passports under pressure from tourism-dependent southern countries.

But cooped-up consumers' getaway plans face reality checks - from unpredictable virus variants to lingering EU divisions over vaccine passports, with France leading resistance from several states over political and discrimination concerns.

Britain's tentative move towards restoring travel "puts pressure on other countries to do the same, which is good for us“, said Grigoris Tasios of the Greek Hoteliers' Federation. Greece has eased restrictions for vaccinated Israelis and is discussing a similar arrangement with the UK.

Tourism from Germany, another big travel market lagging the UK on vaccinations, hinges on Berlin dropping quarantines for tested passengers, Lufthansa Chief Executive Carsten Spohr said this week.

In the aftermath of Britain's departure from the EU, its reputedly unruly tourists are at the centre of a battered travel