Travel warning issued for tourists going to Spain, here's how it will affect your holiday

A warning was issued to all the Brits who plan to travel to Spain this holiday season.

Tourists are expected to face 'endless queues' at airports and miss their connecting flights as the Spanish authorities still work out the most efficient border control process after Brexit.

Who is at risk?

Javier Gandara, the president of the Spanish association of airlines, ALA, warns that Britons who'll go on holidays in Spain this summer could be left disappointed by ‘missed connections’ or ‘endless queues’ at passport border control.

He said:

The image of endless queues or missed connections is the last thing we need.

Gandara raised the alarm following a chaotic weekend of long waiting times at Madrid airport when over 1,000 tourists were impacted and were missing their connecting flights.

According to him, the tiresome situation is likely to be repeated at tourist hotspots such as Alicante, Malaga and the Canary Islands.

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ALA demanded Spain’s Ministry of the Interior take action so the ‘necessary resources are available in all Spanish airports’ at the beginning of the summer. They blame the queues on a lack of border staff.

Gandara is concerned that, as the busy season is fast approaching, a huge influx of British tourists is expected to arrive in Spain and if nothing gets done, problems are imminent and would give a bad impression of the country.

Who is to blame for the queues?

The airport operator AENA had said that border force is not its responsibility and that it is up to the Ministry of the Interior to resolve the problem.

Since the UK left the EU, British tourists have to have their passports stamped every time they enter and leave Spain, which means that queues could be longer than before Brexit.

Last summer, they faced long waiting times at several major Spanish airports during the peak holiday season.

Britons can stay in Spain for a total of 90 days out of every 180 without needing a visa. Overstaying may result in fines, deportation or even a ban from entering Spain.

However, passport stamps may soon be a thing of the past as the EU is set to introduce a new electronic system.

The ETIAS will operate electronically and control the entry of non-EU citizens to the bloc. Britons will have to pay a fee every three years to have it.

The launch of the new system was recently delayed and is now expected to start at some point in 2024.

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Sources used:

- Express: 'Spain holiday warning as British tourists to face 'endless queues' at airports this summer'