Demand For U.K.-U.S. Flights Surge After White House Commits To Relax Covid Travel Restrictions

Demand for travel from the U.K. to the U.S. has surged after the White House announced Monday that international tourists who are fully vaccinated against coronavirus will be permitted to enter the U.S. for the first time in more than a year starting in November, two of Britain’s largest airlines told Forbes.

KEY FACTS
 

• Virgin Atlantic told Forbes in a statement Tuesday that it had a 600% overnight jump in bookings to the U.S. compared to the same time last week, with the most popular destination being New York City.
• Flight bookings to popular vacation spots with warm weather have also surged, Virgin Atlantic said, with flights to Orlando up elevenfold, Miami up ninefold and Las Vegas up eightfold.   
• British Airways, the U.K.’s flag carrier, told Forbes in a statement that searches on its website for flights and holiday packages for U.S. destinations had jumped significantly, with searches up 2,000% for Thanksgiving dates compared to the same period last week, and a 900% jump for dates around Christmas.