Dutch follow suit after Danes lift tourism restrictions on travel to Malta

Both Denmark and the Netherlands have announced that Malta will be the first country in yellow category

Both the Netherlands and Denmark have announced that Malta will now be the first country their ‘yellow’ categories, with Danish authorities advising against non-essential travel to all other countries.

In effect, this means that Danish tourists can visit Malta, with no quarantine or isolation requirement upon their return.

Following yesterday’s announcement by the Danish authorities, the Netherlands also revised their travel advice for Malta as from saturday, whereby Malta is no longer a COVID high-risk area for The Netherlands. This means that when visiting Malta, Dutch citizens will not be required to quarantine for 15 days.

“The Maltese government’s strategy of a strong vaccination roll-out, complimented by restrictive measures aimed at being eased in a gradual manner are the main ingredients behind this sterling news,” said tourism minister Clayton Bartolo.

The Dutch market remains a crucial one for a small island state like Malta in attracting high quality tourism. “Opening our tourism industry in a responsible manner is key to ensure a sustainable future for one of the major pillars of the Maltese economy,” Bartolo said.

MTA chief executive officer Johann Buttigieg said this augured well for Malta’s tourism season this summer, set to kick start on 1 June. “We look forward to more countries reviewing their travel advice for Malta, so that their respective citizens can finally start planning their much-needed, relaxing, and safe holiday this Summer.”

The Scandinavian market is also crucial for Malta in attracting high quality tourism to the country. Buttigieg said the MTA has been striving to ensure Malta will not only attract tourists because of its beaches, weather and food, “but also because of the fact that it is one of the safest destinations in Europe. We look forward to further announcements by other European countries, hopefully in the coming days.”

This news comes after the United Kingdom omitted Malta from its ‘green’ list, with UK tourists unable to travel freely to Malta without need for quarantine.

However, Germany recently declared Malta as no longer being a COVID-19 risk area, following a re-examination of its travel advice.