Last checked at 
* Govt says international travel banned until May 17
* Will provide further information on April 12
* Bookings soar as much as 600% for July, August
* Spain, Greece, Turkey popular destinations
(Adds analyst comment, BA, easyJet comment)
By Sarah Young
LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Britons rushed to book foreign
holidays after the government laid out plans to gradually relax
coronavirus restrictions, giving battered airlines and tour
operators hope that a bumper summer could come to their rescue.
Bookings flooded in on Monday evening and Tuesday following
the government's announcement on Monday that travel could
restart from mid-May, with Spain and Greece the most popular
destinations, airlines and holiday companies said.
EasyJet said that bookings on its flights from
Britain for this summer had jumped by more than 300% compared to
a week ago and bookings for its summer holiday packages had
increased by more than 600% compared to a week earlier.
Holiday company TUI UK said that its bookings had
surged 500% compared to a week ago, while holiday and airline
group Jet2 said its bookings had increased by more than
600%.
The companies did not give precise numbers of bookings, and
industry sources said the increases were likely to be from very
low levels last week. Uncertainty over trips had stopped demand
in what is usually a key winter booking period with cash flowing
in.
This summer is make-or-break for many airlines and holiday
companies which are struggling to survive with close to a year
of almost no revenue due to pandemic restrictions. Without it
many will need extra funds after burning through cash reserves.
There is still uncertainty over exactly how and when
international routes can reopen, but the surge in bookings
nevertheless helped travel stocks.
Shares in easyJet were up 8% in afternoon trading, hitting
their highest level since last March, while shares of BA-owner
IAG were 3% higher, and Jet2 was up 1.5%.
While British tourists are some of the biggest spenders in
Europe, the presence of a more infectious variant of coronavirus
in the UK could still hinder holiday plans. France and Spain
have shut their borders to most UK travellers due to variants.
UK holidaymakers will know more on April 12 when the
government publishes a travel review. It has said that a
lockdown ban on most international travel will stay until at
least May 17.
That should give airlines time to plan their summer
schedule, a process which takes months.
Travel site Skyscanner said flight bookings made on Monday
were 69% higher than the previous day. Spain was the top
destination.
"Our data shows that travellers are very well tuned into any
updates about restrictions. We are seeing this latest news
translate into a surge in travel demand," said Skyscanner
flights chief Hugh Aitken.
Both TUI and Jet2 said destinations in Greece, Spain and
Turkey were the most booked, with people opting to go from July
onwards. British Airways said searches for holidays on its
website had tripled since the government's announcement.
EasyJet said people were booking trips to beach resorts with
holidaymakers keenest to travel in August. The airline also
sought to take advantage of the holiday rush to put on sale its
flights for spring and summer next year, a move which could help
it rebuild cash reserves depleted during the pandemic.
Britain's route back to normality is helped by rapid
progress with its vaccine plan. Over 17.7 million people, or a
quarter of the population, have already had a first dose of the
jab. The government is also considering options for vaccine
passports.
Sounding a note of caution, Bernstein analysts warned that
slower vaccine programmes in mainland Europe could still scupper
the recovery in cross-border tourism this summer.
"Unless that meaningfully improves in short order, we worry
that governments will be unwilling to lift restrictions by
summer," Bernstein's Daniel Roeska said.
Airlines and travel companies hope travel to Europe will
open up and that progress on Britain's vaccination programme
will mean that from May 17 the UK will end its holiday ban and
remove a 10-day quarantine requirement, a big deterrent for
holidaymakers, and some of its COVID-19 testing rules.
(Reporting by Sarah Young, Editing by Paul Sandle and Susan
Fenton)
