del.Almendro

From gov.uk, Spanish travel advice:

Overland travel and transit

Spain’s land borders are open, however travel restrictions, border controls and testing requirements may be in place depending on the country you are travelling from.

Overland travellers (by road or rail) from France may be required to present evidence either of a negative test, of being fully vaccinated or of having had and recovered from COVID-19 in the last 6 months. See Testing requirements for further information and exemptions. While these testing requirements don’t apply to overland travellers from Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar, travel into Spain from all locations is limited.

Border controls at the Portugal land border with Spain have been lifted.

Anyone successfully flying into Portugal now will also satisfy Spanish entry requirements, so if border check is in place at the bridge there should be no problem. Those already in Portugal before yesterday should be OK driving over the bridge, although there might be a different outcome should a border check pop up.

neil77

Thanks for that, my concern is not coming into Spain from Portugal, but rather Portugal's new rule of yesterday, that anyone entering Portugal be that by land, air or sea, will have to quarantine for 14 days if they havent had 2 x vaccines. So my question is, if someone, who had not had both vaccines, flew into Faro, would the Portuguese accept the fact that the person was driving directly to Spain, or would they want that person to quarantine in Portugal first? Cant find any info on the internet about that scenario

growinspain

I would hope they quarantine you and your entourage if you have one.
Too many "what ifs".
Who is to say that you would not stop on the way into Spain?

Basically you are flying into Portugal and it is Portugal's laws you will need to follow.

del.Almendro

I reckon a big fat NO would be your non-negotiable answer. You simply have to quarantine in Portugal without proof of double-jabbing, irrespective of any onward travel plans once in Faro.

neil77

Thats an opinion, but its the actual rule or current laws I was hoping for. And Im assuming there is a clause for people transiting the hour's drive directly to Spain. Most countries do have clauses for people transiting their countries, and I have seen some mentioning a time limit of two hours or so. But cannot find anything on the Portugal sites for such a quick transit, or any transit for that matter

del.Almendro

Best advice would be rebook to fly to Sevilla.

neil77

good suggestion, but not possible due to certain circumstances

missile

It is Portugal's rules you will need to follow. I doubt you will be permitted to board the plane. However, I would suggest you contact your chosen airline as rules are changing more frequently than I change my underwear.

neil77

I agree, although about the rules changing frequently, not your underwear!!
One wonders if the airline would be involved in the quarantine issues, from my experience they just need to check negative PCR test or Antigen whichever is applicable. The passenger locator is uploaded to the website anyway. But still worth asking them anyway
I think my best option is to email the relevant Portugal department which I think is 'DGS' and see if they've got an answers. When previously asked them about the inability to enter a Spanish address [as transiting from Faro directly to Spain] on the Passenger Locator Form, they didnt have a clue! So not too hopeful

neil77

After a considerable amount of being passed to one person and another by the 'SEF' department, who initially responded to my request by directing me to their website, to which I responded that the answer to my question is not listed on their website, they then suggested I telephone their call centre, but the numbers they gave [same as on their website] do not connect.
However, I have manged to find on the 'Visit Portugal' website which has been updated to include the latest quarantine rules for Portugal:Quarantine
Quarantine does not apply to:

√ Passengers traveling on essential trips and whose period of stay in national territory, attested by a return ticket, does not exceed 48 hours;

Before anyone takes issue with the wording 'essential travel', the same page on that same website states 'essential travel' to be:

Essential Travel definition
“Essential travel” is defined as trips allowing the transit, entry into and departure from Portugal for professional purposes, study, family reunions, health and humanitarian reasons and under the reciprocity principle.

So I have the answer to my question regarding transiting Portugal to get to Spain, and I hope this information will help others, as Im sure there are many living or wishing to visit family in Ayamonte or surrounding areas, whose most convenient airport is Faro

del.Almendro

I suspect 'transit' refers solely to airport transit where you have a connecting flight leaving the same airport within 48 hours.

I would be inclined to obtain a written assurance from the Embassy before relying on any other interpretation.

missile

neil77

re: Passengers traveling on essential trips and whose period of stay in national territory, attested by a return ticket, does not exceed 48 hours

But if travelling to Spain from Faro airport directly, then the 'period of stay' would not be in 'national territory' then [i.e.not Portugal territory]

I rather think some people are reading far too much into these statements, however wise it is to be cautious

del.Almendro

I still think you would need to produce evidence of a return flight from Faro due to depart within 48 hours of arrival.

O'LearyAir is selling 'em for a fiver each if you book by tomorrow......

neil77

Im not reading it like that at all, Im reading that you can stay in Portuguese territory for 48 hours as long as you're gone after that. If someone were to be transiting through Portugal and having an onward flight say 48 hours later, say for example Lisbon airport, then that person would have to leave the airport grounds to maybe stay for the night somewhere in a hotel near the airport, thereby increasing the risk of spreading any virus. Its down to interpretation, not only by us, but also by the people who set up these rules, then also the people on the ground who will implement the rules, and they could all see it differently. Im sure anyone would see that a person flying into Faro and taking a 40 minute drive straight out of Portugal would be perfectly acceptable and safer for Portugal than staying there for 48 hours! And how could they monitor/manage quarantining in another country anyway?