UK travel list changes: three off-beat places you can visit as recommended by Manchester tour experts

The relaxation of international travel rules means Mancunians looking to get away on holiday now have a broader range of options to pick from.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps has announced that from October 4 the amber list will go.

Instead there will simply be a red list of countries where quarantine in a hotel is required on return.

Manchester World spoke to one travel company in the city-region which specialises in more unusual destinations to find out what the changes mean for the industry and where people can now consider booking their next trip.

Opening up the world of travel some more

Talk about travel during the Covid-19 pandemic has focused quite a lot on popular destinations that receive huge numbers of British tourists, such as Spain, Portugal and Greece.

That, though, is not the sort of trip that Greater Manchester concern Lupine Travel offers.

Instead the Wigan-based company founded by Dylan Harris gives people the chance to enjoy an array of extraordinary adventures off the beaten track, with the list of destinations on the tour operator’s website including North Korea, Iran, Mali and Mongolia.

Unsurprisingly, like the entire tourism and travel industry, Lupine has been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dylan said the latest announcement by the Government was welcome news.

He said: “The changes have really helped us. A lot of our destinations are more unusual and you can’t get direct flights there, and some of our major transit points like Turkey, Egypt and Kenya have come off the red list.

“That has been the major stumbling block over the past few months.

“We’ve only had a handful of tours and they’ve been for non-Brits.

“It is also good news about PCR tests no longer being needed when coming back to the UK from non red list countries.

“We’ve had to cancel trips because we were going to more remote places and facilities to get PCR tests done weren’t there.

“Having no amber list any more has simplified things.”

Ongoing barriers and reluctance to travel

However, Dylan cautioned against thinking that things have changed a lot for Lupine and other travel operators.

He said returning to pre-Covid business levels could still take another couple of years and says there is still a reluctance to go abroad.

He said: “We were hoping some more countries would come off the red list but that wasn’t to be.

“Everything that was on the amber list is being switched to green but apart from a few countries everything that was on the red list is staying on it.

“Bookings have started to increase but a lot of people still won’t travel, either because of Covid in general or because they are worried the country they are going to might be put on the red list and they will have to pay £2,000 for a quarantine hotel room when they return.”

Dylan also warned that the simplifications to the system could actually make people more nervous of booking and travelling.

He said: “At least with the amber list you had an idea that a country might be moved to the red list.

“It was a kind of buffer zone in advance.

“Now there will essentially just be ‘go’ and ‘don’t go’. Countries could suddenly just get switched again.”

Three tips for more unusual holiday destinations

With an extended range of possible places to visit at travellers’ fingertips, we asked Dylan to pick out three locations that Mancunians might not have considered visiting but are now on the list of potential destinations.

• Pakistan. Dylan said the country has something for everyone, from culture vultures to nature lovers.

“In the north it has got the most incredible scenery you will see, with high mountains. It is just a beautiful area.

“Then you go further south and you get to a city like Lahore, which is really vibrant and bustling with masses of culture, so much history and lovely friendly people.”

• Maldives. These stunningly-beautiful islands in the Indian Ocean are known around the world for being the ultimate beach holiday with perfect sand and pellucid blue waters.

Dylan suggests that after the stresses and strains of living through a global pandemic this might be just the tonic.

He said: “For anyone looking for somewhere to relax and totally forget about the last 18 months, you can’t go wrong with the Maldives.

“It’s got luxurious resorts, pristine beaches and amazing diving opportunities.”

• Bosnia and Herzegovina. For people who have already visited much of Europe and fancy something different Dylan suggests the Balkan country is an underappreciated gem.

He said: “Sarajevo is a wonderful city that hasn’t yet been hit by hordes of tourists like many other capitals in Eastern Europe.

“The old town is beautiful and full of great small boutique restaurants and bars.”

Other attractions in the country include staggering scenery and the medieval bridge in the town of Mostar.