Brexit chaos is continuing to cause calamity for British holidaymakers – with experts insisting there are huge “drawbacks” for travellers in what they term “the bumpy road ahead.” The Brexit separation of the UK from the EU will take place on October 31 – yet a divorce deal has not yet been secured. Ever since the Brexit referendum in 2016, sterling had plummeted against the euro. Travel experts have warned there will be a additional “drawback” for holidaymakers in the form of visas – documents Britons will need to travel to countries in Schengen countries.
The European Parliament recently confirmed UK residents will not need a visa to travel within the EU – yet countries outside the bloc still necessitate one.
Matthew Luczynski, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder at accommodation booking platform Travala.com, told of the impact for Britons if a deal was secured.
The alternative is a no deal Brexit, where the UK would leave the EU with no specific terms or conditions of how to proceed.
He told Express.co.uk: “If there is a withdrawal agreement, British travellers will need to apply to visit the Schengen Zone by way of the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS).
“These travellers would be treated similarly to visa-exempt nationals such as those from the United States and Japan, arriving in Schengen countries.
“This can be compared to the ESTA programme in the United States, which is open to nationals with visa-free entitlements in the country.”
He added: “Whether or not a withdrawal agreement is fully decided upon by October 2019, the primary drawback is that entry at the EU border is no longer guaranteed for Britons as it was once before.”
In a black forecast for the future, they added: “No matter what happens in October, only time will tell what the long-term implications will be for the UK’s travel industry.
Today, the local travel and tourism industry accounts for almost 10 per cent of the country’s economy.
“The change in ease of mobility for Britons looking to travel to the EU will have implications, as our outbound travel industry contributes £28.31 billion a year to the UK economy.
“As we look beyond the EU, Brexit may provide potential opportunities to fortify alliances with commonwealth countries or cultivate partnerships and trade agreements with new countries and territories, while giving the UK greater choices in our laws and regulations when it comes to travel.”
The decision was made by the European Parliament committee and comes amid huge confusion over the ongoing impact of Brexit on travel.
The decision came amid huge controversy within the European Parliament over the way the draft legislation hailed Gibraltar a “colony”, which had been a huge sticking point in the entire legislation.
Parliamentary rapporteur, Bulgarian EU lawmaker Sergei Stanishev, told the body of the immediacy of the decision ahead of April 12 – the UK’s scheduled date to leave the EU in a no deal scenario.
He said: “The 12th of April is coming and the faith of millions of UK citizens and EU citizens and their right to travel is in our hands,” he said when asking the committee to back the proposal.”
