Travelling to Spain

I'm getting ready to go to Spain next month on a 4 times re-booked/2 year delayed holiday to Spain.

I'm going through the certificates/documentation required to be allowed entry, and to be honest it's making my head hurt, as it's very hard to get a definitive answer to a few things that I'm not sure of as it depends on what you read.
It can be nerve wracking enough hoping you've dotted all the I's and crossed all the T's but this will be my first flight post full Brexit/UK becoming a third country and Covid and I hate uncertainty & like definitive's when I travel abroad.

So, I was wondering if anyone has actually been to or knows someone that's flown to Spain in say the last few months (since the restrictions have been reduced/lifted) that can shed a bit of light on exactly how the process works/what's required when entering Spain.

I'm not interested in "Googling" it or anecdotal requirements for travelling to other countries as each one is different or the question of whether flying is a good idea or not.
Save them cancelling the flight I've now got too much invested in the ticket to just let it go, so going is what I'll be doing.
So I was just interested if someone can say yes it's A, B, C. etc.

hi tba yes i was thyere last summer and my girl went in feb, the new update was april 20th,
what did you need to know?

I imagine the Spanish Embassy will be best authoritative guide for travellers - and one should always ensure adequate healthcare provision.

The free European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) is being phased out following the Brexit deal in favour of the also free Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC). You can still use an EHIC for now, but if you've not got one, you'll normally need to apply for a GHIC. Both cards get free or discounted medical care in all EU countries and Switzerland.

I've just come back from Bulgaria which uses the same regulations as other EU countries. Basically the most important thing that you need to do is to register on your NHS app that you are travelling. That then supplies a QR code which they can check to make sure that you are fully vaccinated etc.

They may do a general health check (temp. etc) on arrival but they didn't when I went and may contact you for a NAAT check up to 48 hours after arrival.

At every boarder crossing that I went through on my trek of The Balkans they asked to see your NHS App or medical certificate as proof of up to date vaccine.

You can download your NHS COVID Pass in pdf format. It shows a QR code along with the brand (and it's details, manufecturer, batch number etc), number of doses you've had of the vaccine and administration centre.

the spanish embassy has been on indefinate strick for some tim e now boydel, :)


although you could try the spanish tourist office in london but they didnt reply to me ;)

Make sure your travel insurance covers you for anything COVID. I used "cover for you" which is underwritten by AXA. They use the "Travelmate" app.

If anything has changed it will be on the goverments travel advice page.

If you are fully vaccinated - you need to get the Covid passport on your phone, not the one that could be used in England for entry to nightclubs etc. Tho if you do already have that one, it seems to make the process easier ?

This passport can be found on a NHS website, you will need a photo of yourself and a photo of your passport. The website says to allow 7 days to be processed but my daughter received hers within 30 mins.

Masks are now only required on public transport ( including the plane ) and need to be ' medical ' ones i.e. not a material one ? My daughter had several of the blue paper ones with her and tho no kite mark on them no-one asked/challenged her masks. You probably don't need your mask until you get to the gate at the airport tho that may depend on whom you are flying with and from which airport.


No entry requirements back into England.

( Like in England masks are still required in medical centers, hospitals and pharmacies etc. - but I hope you don't need to visit any of them )

Thanks Boydel.
But as I mentioned, didn't really need generic "google" type info suggestions, from what I've been looking at, there's a lot of conflicting data depending on what authority you look at. I know the situation changes regularly so It's confusing to get anything hard and fast.
I'm okay on the EHIC. Got mine renewed before the cut off so it's valid until 2025.

Capn,
I'm okay on my NHS Covid App/Certificate which I'll download on my phone and print out too (I like to have hard copies in hand).
One thing I can't confirm absolutely is regarding the Spain Travel Health (SpTH) registration.
It doesn't make it clear whether the UK NHS Covid certificate is considred an EU equivalent, so that will effect whether you need to also complete a form to travel (within 48 hours of departure) or not.
I'll probably just play safe and do one anyway, as it seems from one thing I've read, that you need the QR code on that completed form (or presumably the QR code on your acceptable Covid Certificate) to gain access to the terminal/baggage reclaim.

Talk about taking the joy out of travelling.

One thing I can't confirm absolutely is regarding the Spain Travel Health (SpTH) registration.

I had to check up on that and they class the NHS digitatl certificate (on app) as equivalent to EU Digital COVID Certificate. They implemented an agreement that the UK and all EU member states can scan their respective citizens’ COVID vaccination status using the EU Digital COVID Certificate (DCC) or equivakent. You only need the SpTH QR if you do not have the EU Digital COVID Certificate or equivalent unless it has changed since mid-March when I was crossing it's borders.

They will ask you for your reason to travel ie. business or pleasure. This might provide clarity.
https://www.spth.gob.es

Between March and mid-Arpil I travelled through:
Bulgaria
Croatia
Romania
Serbia
North Macedonia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Albania
Spain
Italy

As long as you're not writing this from an Italian prison. Haha.

tba the covid pass is the most important thing that you need at the minute and having paper copies is a big help,
you need to do the spth again a paper copy will be good as when i landed the pass would not work on the phone at first so they sent me to fill in a paper copy, looked very long then i managed to get the qr code up and moved on, they then do a computer temp test and let you get the bags,
nhs is considered the eu equivilent

lucky you i cant get a covid pass or recovery certificate, :(

This could be the norm in many countries in the foreseeable future but possibly for many years in places.

i nearly forgot to mention , they check at the airport now that you have 100aeros for each day that you are staying either in cash or you can prove its in an account , and i just seen lots of new rules , cant walk home in a bikini, need a top on in the street , no smoking beaches etc etc check them out too, i always had a mask around my wrist too, :)

I knew about the no-smoking beaches. About time too.
But I can't believe I've not heard about this means of subsistence daily euros amount for third country travellers entering the EU/Schengen areas and have just checked it out.
Flippin 'eck that's another thing to worry about now as I easily have enough euros to last my time there, which I can do relatively cheaply, but it's no way equivalent to euro100/day which is a total joke. I always take a few hundred quid in £'s just in case but not £k's which I'll have to take under these regulations on the off chance that you're stopped and questioned.
Short of taking a big wadge of cash, it'll probably mean taking credit card statements to prove your credit limit is sufficient &/or having that amount in your bank account and be able to prove that it's there.

The available cash via Debit/Credit card available amounts is the easiest way to satisfy the subsistence criterion for anyone with a smartphone.

A work around exchange rate costs is to use a Currensea card. They link it to your account unlike pre-pay cards and cut out the middle man.

Currensea also has an app you can use from your phone providing if features NFC.

When I was travelling there a month ago subsistence costs only apply to business travellers.

At the moment we aren't classed as a third country and still have a reciprocal arrangement. However, there's talk that may change at the end of the year.

Two very important things if you are travelling practically anywhere in the world is your up to date jabs and a smart phone.