Green list travel: Is a round-trip to Madeira worth the hassle?
It was one of eight TUI flights departing the UK on Momentous Monday – May 17 – the day it became legal for Brits to take a holiday abroad. TUI invited the press to try out a flight with the new rules, so, along with 128 other passengers, I would soon be landing in the balmy 25C warmth of sub-tropical Madeira. As part of Portugal, this Atlantic Ocean island is one of only a dozen destinations to make it on to the Government’s Green List. It meant that thankfully we wouldn’t have to quarantine on our return to the UK.
Thrilling though it was to be flying again, it had been a bit of a long-haul to get holiday-ready. In these Covid times, preparation begins 72 hours before departure, taking a Fit to Fly PCR test – the first of a trio of tests required for my round-trip.
The hassle of arranging them – not to mention the expense – was a little off-putting, but TUI has teamed up with testing partner Chronomics to offer customers Covid test packages. For the affordable price of £60, the package includes a Fit to Fly PCR test, a Test to Return to the UK (lateral flow test) to be taken before the flight home and another PCR test, which will be sent to your home to be taken on day two after your return.
On receipt of my negative result, I registered on the Madeira Safe website to upload the result. I didn’t have to wait long for an email confirmation, and promptly logged back on to the site to find my QR code for presentation at check-in. Once I produced my passport and proof of the negative PCR result, I got my boarding pass.
On landing at Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport, after the novelty of having my passport stamped, I again called up the QR code and negative test result on my mobile for inspection before being allowed to leave the airport.
