TUI ditches face mask rules for passengers on UK flights ahead of Easter holidays

TUI passengers on UK flights will no longer be required to wear a face mask in the aircraft although there are some exceptions depending on your destinations

A TUI airways plane in the air with the logo on the tail
TUI is lifting its face mask policy on flights from England and Northern Ireland

TUI has scrapped a requirement for passengers to wear face masks on a number of its UK flights, following in the footsteps of Jet2 which made the same move last week.

Other airlines such a sBritish Airways, Ryanair and easyJet continue to operate face mask policies for passengers.

The holiday giant no longer requires holidaymakers travelling to/from England or Northern Ireland to wear a mask during their flights.

The company has issued an update on its travel policy explaining: “It’s no longer a legal requirement for those travelling to or from England or Northern Ireland to wear a face mask during their TUI Airways flight, but – in accordance with UK government and EU Charter guidance – we do still strongly recommend that you do so. Please don’t travel if you’re showing any COVID-19 symptoms, or testing positive – you can change your holiday fee-free under our COVID flexibility policy.”

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It’s worth noting that for anyone aged 12 or over flying on routes to/from Wales or Scotland must still wear a face mask during their flight unless exempt from medical reasons.

Meanwhile, there are some holiday destinations which continue to have face mask rules in place, including these as a mandatory requirement on inbound and outbound flights. For example, face masks are mandatory for any flights to/from the USA, and Italy operates similar rules.

To give you a helping hand, we’ve highlighted some of the top holiday hotspots’ face mask rules for the likes of France, Spain, Greece, Turkey and more.







Passengers may still be required to wear face masks on flights to destinations where this is a requirement
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Image:

AFP via Getty Images)

As part of its travel policy TUI warns: “Whether you’re required to wear a mask on your flight or not, you may need to wear a mask when you’re leaving the plane in your destination, so make sure you’ve got masks with you.”

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

Brits’ holiday options have been increasing in recent weeks in a boost ahead of Easter and May half term. 12 countries have eased travel rules for UK travellers including France, Greece, Spain and Tunisia, including axing a requirement for pre-travel PCR tests.

Meanwhile a number of long-haul destinations have tentatively started to welcome back tourists.

Bali has announced plans to lift quarantine rules for vaccinated Brits, while Vietnam is looking to reopen to vaccinated tourists three months earlier than planned.

Other destinations relaxing restrictions include Canada which no longer requires PCR tests from vaccinated Brits if they prefer an antigen test, and Sri Lanka which has scrapped pre-travel Covid tests completely.

Where can I go on holiday from the UK right now?

The UK’s travel rules also eased back in February.

Under the changes, fully vaccinated arrivals no longer need Covid tests before or after arriving in the UK. For unvaccinated arrivals there are still pre-departure and post-arrival tests, although the requirement to self-isolate for 10 days has ended.

There are hopes that passenger locator forms could also come to an end in time for Easter.

Travel restrictions can change quickly during the pandemic. Always check the latest Foreign Office travel advice for a destination before booking and going on a trip abroad.