Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive at Advantage Travel Partnership said the move was “the best news the industry has had in a while”.

“It’s also positive to see the government has confirmed lateral flow tests will replace day 2 PCR tests from late October,” she added, “but we desperately need to know the exact date so families can plan for the half term break. 

“Although travel to many South American destinations is still not possible, the destinations that have been removed are ideal for travel agents booking clients on long-haul and forward bookings for 2022 and beyond. While this is a hugely positive step forward, it does beg the question as to why all of a sudden 47 destinations that were previously deemed to be high risk, are now safe to travel to? We’d still like to see the removal of inhumane hotel quarantine from remaining red list countries and replaced with home self-isolation and appropriate testing instead.”

Lo Bue-Said also urged the FCDO to align its advice, pointing out that “while this news means that travel is the most accessible it has been in almost two years, it is still complicated, and booking with a knowledgeable and trusted travel agent has never been more important.”

Sean Doyle, British Airways’ chairman and chief executive said: “It finally feels like we are seeing light at the end of a very long tunnel. Britain will benefit from this significant reduction in red list countries, and now it’s time to turn our attention to eradicating testing for fully vaccinated travellers to ensure we don’t lose our place on the global stage.

“Once we have a firm date for the reopening of US borders in November, we look forward to reconnecting our two countries, reigniting transatlantic businesses and reuniting families who have been separated for the best part of two years.”

Airport Operators Association Chief Executive Karen Dee agreed adding: “This is another significant step forward to normalising international travel and should give people confidence to book.

“Recognising more countries’ vaccination programmes is a vital step forward in restarting inbound tourism and business travel, which supported nearly half a million jobs in the UK tourism and hospitality sectors pre-pandemic.

“With the autumn half-term holiday rapidly approaching, particularly in Scotland where many schools will break up for half term next week, the UK and devolved governments cannot afford to delay confirming the date when Day 2 PCR tests will move to lateral flow test any longer. The longer ministers wait, the bigger the impact on forward bookings and the pace of aviation’s recovery.”

Meanwhile Julia Simpson, president and chief executive of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), said there was now “no justification for a red list to remain in the UK”.

“Other countries have realised that blanket country measures are no longer needed and instead assess on individual risk and whether travellers have been fully jabbed.

“While this is great news for countries such as South Africa which have been severely impacted by their red list status, welcoming all fully-vaccinated travellers, regardless of country of origin is key to restarting safe international travel.”