With the removal of South Africa from the UK’s travel red list – which will take effect on October 11 – the Association Of Southern African Travel Agents (Asata) says its first priority has been to provide clarity on the requirements the UK will impose to prove a travellers’ vaccination status.

Asata CEO Otto De Vries notes that South African travellers must be able to make confident choices to travel to the UK, knowing exactly what the basic requirements are and without having to worry that their proof of vaccination might not be accepted.  

“A travellers’ vaccination status will be increasingly important in the years to come as it will dictate their ability to enter and exit destinations around the world. Asata has always maintained that, once you’re fully vaccinated and you can present proof of vaccination, you shouldn't be required to quarantine or even provide a negative polymerase chain reaction test.

“The UK is a popular destination both for South African leisure and business travellers. The fact that vaccinated South Africans could travel without the need for quarantine would be a major boost for our travel industry,” De Vries says.

“We are ecstatic that South Africa has been taken off the UK’s red list. The UK is a key source market into South Africa and this decision means that UK travellers still have time to book their year-end trips to South Africa.

“The busy travel season of November through to March, particularly out of the UK and Europe, will be buoyed by this announcement. So this is a real boost for our travel and tourism industry that, as we know, has been decimated by the effects of the global pandemic over the last 18 to 24 months.

“With domestic travel also picking up, our hotels are looking forward to a good end-of-year season,” adds Sun International Hospitality COO Graham Wood.

He notes that the UK contributed 5.79% of Sun International’s total room revenue and 14.26% of international room revenue in 2019.

“The UK is our number one international source market,” he points out.