What kind of test do I need before flying to Northern Ireland?

Simon Calder answers your questions on flying to Ireland, amber list isolation rules, and whether Portugal might go green again

The testing requirements for Northern Ireland are relatively relaxed (Irish Tourism)

Q I want to fly from England to Northern Ireland but I am confused about what test I need before I do so. The government website says “take a lateral flow test before flying”. Does it need to be a paid-for test with written results, or is one of the free at-home tests accepted?

Jenny S

A The contrast between travel within the UK and going abroad is apparent in the relaxed regime for travelling between Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) and Northern Ireland. There are no restrictions, and holidaymakers and other leisure visitors are now welcome in Northern Ireland.

The Northern Ireland Executive recommends a precaution to reduce the risk that you might inadvertently take infection across the Irish Sea – though only if you plan to stay overnight in Northern Ireland. The advice says: “You should take a rapid lateral flow device test (LFD) before you begin your journey.”

This is the free test widely available from the NHS – you can order them online or collect up to two packs of seven rapid tests from a local pharmacy or test site.

It goes without saying that you should only travel if the test is negative.

The executive recommends the same procedure on your return: “Take a rapid lateral flow device test (LFD) before you begin your journey home.”

For the avoidance of doubt, you need not fill in a passenger locator form in either direction, so long as you have not been outside the Common Travel Area (the UK, Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands) in the last 10 days.

In other words, it is all (relatively) relaxed – in complete contrast to the onerous and expensive procedure for returning home to the UK from even a green list country. From Portugal (until Monday), Gibraltar and Iceland, you must pay for private testing before and after your flight.

Portugal may or may not join the green list in the next few weeks (Simon Calder)

Q I am considering going to Portugal even though I will need to quarantine. Can you tell me what the travel insurance implications are, and whether you think it may rejoin the green list any time soon?

Name supplied

A Last Thursday we heard the shock announcement that Portugal – the only mainstream and accessible destination on the government’s “green list” – would be abruptly moved to “amber”. From 4am tomorrow, anyone returning from the mainland or the gorgeous islands of the Azores, Madeira and Porto Santo, must go into self-isolation. The reason: “Increased concern in the spread of variants of coronavirus, including a mutation of the Delta variant, and the risk that is posed of bringing these back to the UK if people are not required to quarantine.”

The government’s move ignored its own previous assurances about a “green watchlist” to give a grace period of a week or two that a country might move to amber status. It appalled the entire travel industry: not only did it trigger a weekend rush back – it destabilises all our plans for the summer.

The transport secretary, Grant Shapps, ended his holiday death warrant by saying: “We continue to say that the public should not travel to destinations outside the green list.”

Fortunately his cabinet colleague, foreign secretary Dominic Raab, says nothing of the sort. The Foreign Office travel advice doesn’t warn against visiting Portugal, on the basis that it is a benign and safe country (though road accident rates are still alarmingly high). That contradiction, which is also applied to Spain’s Canary Islands and a scattering of Greek isles, means that standard travel insurance remains valid.

Unhelpfully, it is impossible to say when Portugal may get its green-list status back. The history of quarantine rules over the past 15 months is characterised by U-turns. But my guess is that the next review – on 24 June – will not do the decent thing and restore quarantine-free travel so quickly.

If you twisted my arm I would guess Portugal will be rehabilitated on 15 July, taking effect on 20 July. But please don’t plan a trip on that basis.

The rules for isolation can be complicated (AFP/Getty)

Q If we travel from an amber country and stay with family for the isolation period, is everyone in the household – including non-travellers – also required to be in isolation?

Oleander 2021

A No. While you must remain in the property where you are self-isolating, others living there need not.

The law says a quarantinee (yes, that is the word describing people in self-isolation) need not isolate “from any member of their household”. Those other members can continue life as normal.

The only time there has been any variation in this position was in November when there were sudden fears about a Danish variant; the government said all members of the arriving traveller’s household must also quarantine.

For the avoidance of doubt, self-isolating at home is a tough regime. You can’t go out to work, go shopping or walk the dog.

You can leave to take tests on days two and eight – or, if it is a home-test kit, leave the property to post it back to the laboratory.

You cannot have visitors, including friends and family, unless they live in the premises where you’re in quarantine.

Oddly, the government advice about exercise is equivocal. If you have “a health condition or a disability” that would be seriously exacerbated if you were not able to go out and exercise, you could assert “exceptional circumstances which permit you to leave your place of quarantine”.

The government says: “You’ll need to consider carefully whether your circumstances are exceptional circumstances that require you to leave your place of quarantine. You could get advice from a medical or other professional to discuss your circumstances so that you can decide.” So there is some flexibility if you genuinely would suffer from a lack of exercise.

Email your questions to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder