Tourism industry set for boost in South East as international travel resumes

Watch: ITV News Meridian's Mike Pearse reports from Heathrow Airport

Fully vaccinated people from America and most European countries will no longer have to quarantine on arrival in the UK from Monday (2 August). 

Travellers, like those at Heathrow, will have to take a pre-departure test and a PCR test on or before the second day after their arrival.

It is hoped the reintroduction of international travel will boost the local economy for tourist hotspots like Oxford.

Kaushik Subramanian, the General Manager of the Courtyard Marriott, said: "Oxford is very diverse in terms of the market it has always attracted.

"It's got good leisure, the universities, the colleges. Then you have a lot of development and research that happens. International travel has always been a bit part of the pie. So it will definitely help us to make it stronger, especially in the long term."

International cruises can now resume after a 16 month break. 

In Southampton, staff are preparing the Iona cruise liner a short journey around British waters.

Alistair Welch from the Port of Southampton says longer journeys will resume soon.

"It's really been a really challenging year for cruise right across the UK and the world. In May we saw the restart of cruising domestically and what today signals is the beginning of the restart of international cruises. We expect to see them slowly returning later this summer."

Nykke Jones from Bournemouth says she is looking forward to spending her honeymoon on a cruise to the Mediterranean next month. 

"We've waited a long time to do this. There's nothing like it. It's just amazing.

"It's one of my favourite holidays, going on a cruise; you can't beat it."

The government said it hoped the move would "reunite people living in the US and European countries with their family and friends in the UK".

Travellers will be required to take a pre-departure test, and a PCR test on or before the second day after their arrival.

The exemption from quarantine for double-jabbed travellers also applies to European countries Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, Monaco, Andorra and Vatican City.

Those vaccinated in the US will also need to provide proof of US residency.

Those returning from France however will still be subject to quarantine rules due to the country's coronavirus situation.

Exemptions will not apply to any country added to the UK's red list of travel destinations.While the changes would be a major boost to the aviation and tourism sectors - which have been severely restricted during the pandemic - the benefit to potential holidaymakers in England may be negligible due to restrictions in destination countries.

The United States, for example, has already announced that most European travellers, including those from the UK, will remained banned from entering the US due to coronavirus fears.

Britons who are US residents or citizens could benefit from the quarantine relaxations when entering England but they would have to quarantine when returning to America.