Ibiza to allow international visitors from July

Spain will reopen its borders for international visitors from 1st July.

In a televised address made on Saturday (23rd May), Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said that Spain will “reopen for foreign tourism in conditions of safety”. The country will also lift its two-week quarantine requirement for overseas arrivals from 1st July, El Pais reports. 

“Foreign tourists can also start planning their holidays in our country,” Sánchez said, the Guardian reports. “Spain needs tourism, and tourism needs safety in both origin and destination. We will guarantee that tourists will not run any risks, nor will they bring any risk to our country.”

“We’re sending everyone a message today: Spain will be waiting for you from July,” he added.

Tourism is one of the most crucial industries in Spain, especially in nightclub hotspot Ibiza. Spain welcomes approximately 80 millions tourists a year, with the industry providing over 12% of the country’s GDP. 

While this news should be positive for Ibiza and the Spanish tourism industry as a whole, there is no certainty about when nightclubs will be able to reopen or to what capacity. At the end of April, Pedro Sánchez announced that, as part of Phase 2 of the country’s lockdown de-escalation plan, “Cultural events” could be able to take place at indoor venues from June, filling a third of their capacity with a maximum of 50 people. Meanwhile, seated outdoor events of up to 400 people will also be able to take place, with social distancing measures being implemented. 

In April, Ibiza clubs Hï and Ushuaïa officially cancelled all scheduled parties for May 2020 due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Last week, the clubs revealed that they would remain shut for June.