If there's one thing we miss most about travelling, it's the excitement of visiting new and familiar destinations - and one of those places is Spain! Brimming with beautiful architecture, delicious food and bustling streets, here's another reason why you should add Spain to your travel bucket list.

Spain reopens to fully vaccinated travellers

Starting 7 June 2021, Spain reopened its international borders to fully vaccinated travellers, in efforts to boost the country's tourism sector that came to a halt due to COVID-19 pandemic.

What are the quarantine and travel requirements when travelling to Spain?

If you're planning to travel to Spain, there are several safety measures you need to adhere to, as well as documents to present:

• Present a COVID-19 vaccination certificate stating that you've been fully vaccinated (more than 14 days before your arrival to Spain)
• Travellers must be inoculated with vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency or World Health Organisation (WHO). As of July 2021, the COVID-19 vaccines that have been approved by WHO are Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Janssen, Moderna, Sinopharm, and Sinovac-CoronaVac.
• Travellers must complete the Health Control Form at least 48 hours before your flight. You will receive a QR code via email, which will be checked by the boarding and health controls upon arrival.
• There are no quarantine requirements for fully vaccinated travellers

Can Malaysians travel to Spain right now?

The brief answer is, fully-vaccinated Malaysians won't be able to travel to Spain any time soon. As reported by The Edge Markets, there are 14.8 million Malaysians, approximately 4.51% of the population, who have received two doses of COVID-19 vaccines, as of June 2021. A large number of fully vaccinated Malaysians consists of front liners, senior citizens, and top government officials. Malaysia has begun inoculating adults above 18 years old since May 2021.

Based on the National Recovery Plan, the government projected that Malaysia will achieve herd immunity (getting 60% of the population immunised) by November and December 2021. However, the projected timeline for herd immunity will depend on multiple factors like the number of daily COVID-19 cases and supply of vaccines. If travelling to Spain is a possibility for Malaysians, that might happen in the first quarter of 2022.

As of June 2021, the Malaysian borders remains closed until FMCO (Full Movement Control Order) transitions to a recovery stage. For now, Malaysians are not allowed to travel abroad unless for emergency or official purposes.

Any exciting things to see and do in Spain?

While Malaysians wait patiently until the situation gets better, there are many fantastic things to do in Spain for your future getaways! You can learn the history of Alhambra Palace, admire the unique architecture of Cordoba Mosque, and see The Cathedral of Seville before your very eyes. Save these stunning places in Spain to immerse yourself in Islamic history!

Since Malaysians are huge foodies, discovering halal food in Spain is a must-do! From hearty seafood paella to delicious croqueta, you're going to love trying these authentic Spanish dishes when you're in Spain.

Whether you're excited to immerse yourself in Spain's stunning architecture or delicious halal food, Spain has so much to offer and more! It may be a while before Malaysians can travel safely to Spain again, but we remain hopeful that better days of travel will be here soon.