End of mandatory Covid testing upon arrival in the UK
The new rules apply to fully vaccinated travellers
Fully vaccinated travellers arriving in the UK no longer have to take a lateral flow test, or a more expensive PCR test, within 48 hours of arrival.
Unvaccinated travellers will continue to require a Covid-19 test, but no longer have to self-isolate when they arrive in the UK.
The easing of coronavirus travel rules is already seeing a spike in the number of people booking half-term getaways.
According to cross-channel train operator Eurostar, 125,000 people have already booked to travel between the UK and the Continent during the school holiday.
Meanwhile, Standsted Airport is expecting around 200,000 passengers to depart between February 11 and 18.
Here in Suffolk, we've been speaking to a local travel agency owner who's now struggling to meet demand following a spike in the number of booking requests.
"We've lost staff all the way through the two years of the pandemic", says Bridget Keevil.
"Now the business is building back up again, we haven't got the amount of staff to deal with the enquiries that we're getting, so our service, which is what we have built our whole business on, is straining at the seams because we just can't get to everybody in the timely manner that we usually do."
But it's not all bad for owner Bridget, who welcomes the change in travel rules. She's noticing customers are increasingly becoming more confident about the idea of travelling again.
"It's really good news. All of the testing gradually is being taken away. Our country, as well as other countries, are abolishing the tests - although there are still a lot of countries that you do have to do tests before you go.
"It is helping with consumer confidence. If you have to take a test, that is always in the back of your mind that it's going to be positive and all the ramifications that come with that.
"I think there's two very different types of travellers. There are those that are still not ready to travel and probably won't be for the rest of the year. And there are those who are just champing at the bit and ready to go."
Looking back on the last two years, Bridget described how the pandemic impacted her business
"It was absolutely devastating. We've had two years of virtually no business.
"In the first few months that we were in lockdown, we were having to refund customers that had pre-booked holidays who couldn't go, quite rightly, as we only sell fully protected holidays. That meant over £1,000,000 worth of refunds
"For us it meant no business, no profits, no money coming into our bank accounts for the two years. We had to give back all our profits that we'd made the previous year as well, to make up for the refunds. In actual fact, so far we've had almost three years with no profit."
Return to normal in sight
Meanwhile, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said scrapping of testing sends "a clear message that we are open for business".
Bridget Keevil, who owns a travel agency in Suffolk, feels that a return to normal is finally in sight.
"The buzz is starting to come back. The testing regimes are being abolished. Very slowly, but surely we are getting back to opening the world up to be able to travel again. I just hope it keeps going in the right direction - for every country to open their borders, as in no tests and no forms that you have to fill in.
"That worries people, especially elderly people that perhaps don't even have an email address or a computer to be able to do it. It all adds onto if somebody is on the edge of 'Shall I book a holiday? Shall I not?'. It might just tip them back to thinking 'Well, no, I'm gonna wait until I can just pack my passport and go rather than having to do all the bureaucratic red tape'.