Kurt Janson
Richard Otten
BREXIT’S EFFECT ON THE
UK TOURISM INDUSTRY On December 31st, 2020, as the clock struck 12 (technically 11 in Britain), The UK’s transition period with the EU ended. With everything that has been going on over the past year, it was an event that was easy to miss. Now that Brexit has finally happened, it’s time to start looking at how it will affect the UK’s tourism industry, specifically as it relates to the glamping industry. The UK and the EU share strong travel and tourism flows. The main destination for UK tourists is the EU and the main source of overseas tourists visiting the UK comes from Europe. Brexit has the potential to disrupt this, but it all depends on how the movement of tourists will be affected. While there will be some changes to travel between the UK and the EU, such as air travel, freedom of movement and insurance and medical emergencies, they are not substantial enough to pose a serious concern. Kurt Janson is Director at the Tourism Alliance, which seeks to establish and maintain a favourable operating
environment for all businesses involved in the delivery of tourism, particularly in England and whose Members comprise leading Trade Associations and Destination Management organisations within the sector. Speaking to International Glamping Business, Janson explains that glamping businesses in the UK should not expect to see many changes as a result of the UK leaving the EU, “Customers from the EU will still be able to bring pets with them using their pet passport, they will still have health coverage under their existing EHIC card and they should not experience any significant delays at immigration control when entering the
UK. The only difference will be that EU nationals will need to carry an insurance green card if they are coming to the UK with their own car. There will be some changes to GDPR requirements on the transfer of data if you are specifically selling in the European market (ie having a dedicated website in EU or have an agent in the EU that takes bookings for you) but this does not apply if EU nationals book via your UK website.” Due to the fact that the UK-EU tourism relationship is so established, possible disruptions to the rules under which travel can occur between them has the
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