Grant Shapps has announced that UK holidaymakers will no longer be required to quarantine on their return from the Maldives. The changes will take effect from 4am on Sunday 25^th October 2020.

The changes will apply to anyone already in the Maldives that returns after 4am on 25^th Ocotber.

There is a catch

Only travellers booked on direct flights to the Maldives will be able to benefit from these new changes. The reason for this is that the indirect flights on the most popular airlines flying into the Maldives such as Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways and Turkish Airlines all require passengers to disembark the aircraft whilst in transit in these airline’s respective hub airports. As all these hub airports are located in countries that are excluded from the travel corridors, passengers will still be required to quarantine on their return.

Its British Airways only for now!

If the countries where the hub airports of any indirect airlines flying to the Maldives are located are added to the list of travel corridors, then it will be possible to fly on these airlines without quarantining on your return. For now however, British Airways is the only airline that you can fly to the Maldives on without having to quarantine on your return.

FCO & Travel Insurance

The good news is that the Maldives is no longer on the list of countries where the FCO advises against all but essential travel. As a result your travel insurance will most likely no longer be invalidated if you choose to travel to the Maldives however, you should check with your travel insurance provider before making a booking.