The transport secretary has warned of long queues abroad for British travellers heading for the UK this summer.

Speaking to Naga Munchetty on BBC Breakfast, Grant Shapps said: “What’s going to need to happen is that before you actually board a plane or potentially a train or a ship, you will need to first of all show that you’ve completed your passenger locator form that you’ve carried out a pre-departure test and you’ve got your test booked for day two when you come back.

“All of that needs to be checked by the carrier, the airline usually, before you travel. So the place to expect queues are at the airport you’re coming from.”

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Air fares are spiking to amber list destinations after Thursday’s announcement.

Prior to the announcement, The Independent collected a random sample of flight prices for key holiday spots and compared them with the fares quoted after the forthcoming rule change was confirmed.

While some stayed the same or saw modest increases, others more than doubled in the hours following the announcement.

For example, the price of a British Airways one-way flight from Heathrow to Nice, France on 20 July – the day after the changes come into effect – now costs over twice as much, jumping from £160 to £361.

BA’s Heathrow to Malaga, Spain, service on 20 July swiftly increased by £54, from £170 to £224.

Meanwhile, post-announcement, easyJet appeared to quickly add an extra flight from Gatwick to Athens, Greece, on 23 July (previously only services on 18 and 25 July were available). The price was £505.99 – more than double the cost of the same flight departing the day before the rules change on 18 July, currently on sale for £218.99.

However, Ryanair’s low fares remain mostly unchanged for the moment, with one-way flights to Venice, Faro and Corfu on or after 19 July priced at £4.99, £9.99 and £12.99 respectively.

Commenting on Thursday’s announcement, Glyn Jones, CEO of London Southend Airport, said it was “welcome news” for the industry and holidaymakers.

But he warned: “Unfortunately testing costs remain high keeping travel out of reach for many, we hope to see a consideration into alternative test options or subsidising costs to allow access for all.

“We are heading in the right direction and hope to see safe travel opportunities continue, not only for travel and tourism but for the many families and friends waiting to be reunited after an extremely challenging time.”

The UK’s “red list” of high-risk countries “has a strong Hotel California vibe about it,” a prominent data analyst has said.

Donal Kane, who tweets as @EvilDoctorK, said: “There’s plenty of countries that should have checked out but only two have ever managed to leave (Mauritius and Portugal).

“It’s very unclear how other countries will escape – going to be a big issue how to unwind it.”

People who have been vaccinated abroad will be able to visit the UK from “amber list” countries later this summer, the transport secretary has said.

While dozens of overseas countries accept NHS vaccination certification, the UK will not recognise immunisation of people abroad.

With British travellers currently banned from going to the US, many people with family across the Atlantic were dismayed to discover that self-isolation rules will continue for people who have been vaccinated abroad.

Speaking to Sky News, the transport secretary said: “That will be phase two of it, and something that we’re very actively working on at the moment.”

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Tim White, who has been analysing coronavirus data for over a year, is warning of surges in infection in Asia.

Tweeting as @TWMCLtd, he says: “Thailand posts another all time record; 9,276 Covid-19 cases today, as well as 73 deaths.

“More restrictions are coming, especially for capital Bangkok.

“South Korea also stepping up anti-Covid-19 measures, describing their situation as ‘maximum crisis level’.

“An all time record 1,316 new cases there today.”

Britain’s biggest port said that post-Brexit disruption could return to Dover and slow trade when holidaymakers head for Europe this summer so the government must urgently reconsider funding redevelopment to prevent long-term damage.

Britain’s passage out of the European Union was eased by a lack of tourists driving to France during the pandemic, enabling port staff to process the additional paperwork for trucks that is now required to access Europe, and keep goods moving.

But the government dropped a travel quarantine requirement for fully vaccinated Britons on Thursday, potentially opening up holiday routes and increasing the number of vehicles that could descend on the south-west port in the summer.

Doug Bannister, CEO of the Port of Dover, told Reuters the site had managed the switch to full customs checks well so far, after Britain left the trade bloc at the end of 2020.

“That’s because we haven’t seen the demand for tourists coming from our facilities, as we would normally expect to see,” he told Reuters on a bright sunny day as a ferry departed for Calais.

“It’s at those points in time when the pressure on the total system increases.”

Reporting by agencies

While travel companies and airlines have reported a surge in interest to amber list spots following Thursday’s announcement, there has also been a spike in interest in private jet enquiries, according to one aviation group.

Mark Briffa, CEO of Air Partner said: “Air Partner has already seen a surge in enquiries about travel to amber list countries, following the government’s comments about scrapping the need to quarantine for those who are double-jabbed and returning from amber countries,” adding that the firm expects to see demand “increase significantly for private jet travel to the amber list”.

He added: “Our private jet business is already back at pre-Covid-19 levels, and we believe this will continue as vaccination programmes drive a recovery in business and leisure travel.”

The UK’s biggest budget airline said flight bookings for amber list spots this summer have spiked by 400 per cent, and holiday bookings by 440 per cent compared to last week.

Alicante and Malaga in Spain; Faro in Portugal; Nice in France; and Greece’s Corfu have seen the biggest uplift, easyJet said.

The airline has put an extra 145,000 seats on sale this summer between the UK and amber list spots in Spain, Greece, Portugal, France, Italy, Croatia and Cyprus.

“We have been delighted with the customer response to the removal of amber list quarantine for the fully vaccinated, so Europe has now turned green for the double jabbed,” said Johan Lundgren, easyJet CEO.

“We have always said that vaccination is the key to unlocking travel and this means that millions will finally be able to reunite with family and loved ones abroad or take that long-awaited trip this summer.”

While the travel industry and holidaymakers were finally dealt a good hand on Thursday with the announcement that fully jabbed Britons could escape quarantine from 19 July when returning from amber countries, many questions remain.

Who better to answer them than renowned travel correspondent Simon Calder?

At 1pm, join him for an ‘Ask Me Anything’, where he’ll answer as many reader questions as possible.

All you need to do is scroll to the bottom of the below article and drop your comment in the box (you’ll need to register first). Then join him on the same page at 1pm as he answers as many questions as he can in an hour.