Camping, caravans and UK holidays may well be the breaks of the future, as travel restrictions remain in place and quarantine rules regarding international travel come into force next month. But now, the UK Government’s deputy chief medical officer might have sparked hope for British tourists wanting a holiday in the UK. Deputy Chief Medical Officer Professor Jonathan Van-Tam said that being outdoors is “biological truism” meaning that it is safer to be outdoors than in an enclosed space.

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Prof Van-Tam made the comment during the UK Government’s daily press conference yesterday.

He said: “It is absolutely a biological truism that outdoor environments are much less risk than indoor environments.”

However, he warned that opening campsites has to be thought about carefully.

He added: “Of course that will need some careful thinking about because sharing a tent is a small enclosed space or can be a small enclosed space with generally poor conditions of ventilation and I guess it depends who you are sharing it with.

“It is the same for a caravan, so it is not a straightforward as it might sound – indoors vs outdoors, hotels vs campsites, it is a little more complex than that.

“I will begin to give that some careful thought.”

According to one camping website, bookings have already reportedly increased in the UK for camping holidays.

Online campsite guide and reservations site, Cool Camping, announced that it has actually seen an increase in people booking for July, August and September.

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The company began receiving more interest after Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave his last announcement on May 10.

Founder of the company Jonathan Knight explained the reason why campsites may be able to open first.

Mr Knight told the MailOnline: “Most campsites have large spaces between pitches, so applying social distancing isn’t much of an issue.”

The UK Government recently announced that all visitors travelling to the UK from abroad will be subject to 14 days in quarantine.

On arrival, they will have to provide details of where they will be staying.

Visitors will then be told to remain at that location for 14 days.

After the 14 days are complete, they will then be allowed to mix with the general population.

However, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps revealed yesterday that the new rules may not come into play until “early next month”.

Mr Shapps also revealed in the House of Commons yesterday that “air bridges” could be a future travel option between the UK and low-risk countries.

Mr Shapps said that the Government is in “active discussions” over introducing “air bridges” which will allow people entering the UK from countries with an ‘R’ rate lower than 1.0 to be exempt without having to be put into quarantine.

He said in the Commons: “It is the case that we should indeed consider improvements for example ‘air bridges’ enabling people from other areas, other countries who have themselves achieved lower levels of coronavirus infection to come to the country.

“Those are active discussions that will go beyond what will initially be a blanket situation.”

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