Officials from the popular Portuguese tourism hotspots of Madeira and the Algarve have welcomed a UK government decision to add the country to the quarantine safe list.

From tomorrow, visitors arriving back in England from the destination no longer have to quarantine for 14-days.

Nuno Vale, executive director of Madeira Promotion Bureau said of the move: “Madeira has long enjoyed an excellent relationship with the UK, with the first British settlement dating back to 16th century, and it is a key market for the destination.

“Given that our response to Covid-19 and handle on the pandemic has been widely reported as being one of the best in Europe, we are very relieved to be able to welcome back British tourists.”

Madeira is considered the World’s Leading Island Destination by voters at the World Travel Awards.

The destination has been widely referred to as one of the safest places to travel to post-pandemic.

To ensure security for both tourists and residents, all people travelling to the islands have to either present a negative test done within 72 hours prior to departure or be tested upon arrival, without costs covered by local authorities.

At present Madeira has 138 registered cases of Covid-19, with 107 recovered and no deaths.

Figures from Cirium show there were a total of 719 flights are scheduled to depart from the UK to Portugal in the week to August 31st, equating to 127,975 seats.

There are a total of 75 routes from the UK to Portugal, operated by seven carriers – Ryanair, British Airways, Jet2, easyJet, TUI Airways, TAP Portugal and Wizz Air.

João Fernandes, president of Algarve Tourism, echoed the warm sentiments.

He said: “It was a long time coming but we are really delighted with the decision to lift the quarantine requirement.

“Here in the Algarve the British market is our biggest and we are so pleased that we can finally welcome back all those British visitors that were put off travelling here because of the quarantine rules.

“Our beaches are prepared, our hotels are open, our restaurants, golf courses, hiking/cycling trails and waterparks are ready.

“Our beautiful region eagerly awaits the British visitor to discover the extraordinary culture and heritage of this part of Portugal.”

The Algarve is considered Europe’s Leading Beach Destination by the World Travel Awards.