Spain and Germany deal blow to hopes of tourism revival

Minister rules out imminent reopening in Spain as Germany extends travel warning

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Spain has ruled out any early reopening of its tourism sector and Germany is set to extend a travel warning for all leisure trips outside the country until mid-June, casting further doubt on when would-be holidaymakers will be able to venture abroad again.

With airline fleets mostly grounded, cross-border train traffic slashed and many EU countries, including France, requiring all arrivals bar their own citizens to formally justify their journey, leisure travel within Europe is at a near standstill. “We have not yet reached the point where we can recommend carefree travel,” the German foreign minister, Heiko Maas, said on Wednesday.