Fewer and fewer German or French tourists go to Britain. The identity card is no longer an acceptable travel document after Brexit.
Tourism is recovering in post-coronavirus Britain.
However, a new worry is rising in the sky of tourism entrepreneurs. According to Brexit legislation, immigrants are required to have a passport. The identity card is no longer valid.
The Guardian magazine writes (you will switch to another service), that both French and Germans stay away, even though tourism is otherwise growing. France and Germany are the most important target markets for the British tourism industry.
Day-trippers lost from Jersey, hikers from Oxfordshire
Britain and especially London are the world’s most popular tourist destinations. When the pandemic subsided, tourist groups have started to return from, for example, the United States.
After October 2021, an identity card will no longer be an acceptable way to prove your identity for those coming to Britain. Almost half of the French or Germans have a valid passport.
The French and Germans now seem to be heading elsewhere because of the new practice. This has prompted British businessmen, worried about the loss of livelihoods, to look for alternatives to attract tourists back.
For example, on the island of Jersey, which is popular with French tourists, a mini-cruise is being tried, in which case the identity card is valid for a day visit.
Bookings by French and German hikers in Oxfordshire’s popular hiking region have halved 2019 levels. The number of vehicles coming to Britain has also decreased in the Eurotunnel.
The school class hikers are missing
Britain has also been popular as a destination for class trips.
According to the Guardian magazine, the journey is easily diverted if a few people in the class do not have a valid passport. At that time, trips are often made to, for example, Ireland or Malta.
Currently, a visa for a child from outside the EU without a passport costs £95. The same applies to refugees.
According to the statistics of the Tourist Alliance, the number of students and schoolchildren visiting Britain has decreased by 83 percent since the time before Brexit. The drop means the loss of a job, for example, for teachers of language courses.
The restoration of class excursion tourism was also on display at the meeting between French and British leaders Emmanuel Macron and Rishi Sunak in March.
The number of Germans has been noted in Cornwall and Devon, among others. The regions are not generally the number one destinations for tourists arriving in Britain.