On June 23, 2016, the United Kingdom held a national referendum on whether or not to remain a part of the European Union. By the morning of the 24th, it was clear that the country had surprised the world by voting in favor of leaving. As no country as large (or as wealthy) as the UK has ever left the EU before, stock markets around the world plunged on the uncertain economic future of Britain. But what does this dissolution from Europe mean for travel to and from the United Kingdom?
The Bad News
First things first, the UK isn't immediately kicked out of the EU. It will be a tedious 2-year long process, so the status quo is not drastically changing for a while. What the EU guaranteed was that all participating countries played by the same rules. Any airline based in an EU country could freely fly to another member country without being subject to differing regulations. Now that Britain is leaving, the UK will have to renegotiate entry and exit requirements with each individual country it wishes to operate in. Depending on the deals reached, this could spell doom for low-cost carriers like Ryanair and Easy Jet. The silver lining (and the hope of many travelers) is that Britain still has the possibility of reaching a participatory agreement will all EU countries, similar to the deal non-member Norway currently enjoys.
Beyond Europe, the "Open Skies" deal that the EU and U.S. arranged allows for carriers to fly between the United States and any member country under the same set of regulations. Britain will similarly have to hash out its own separate agreement with the U.S., which could lead to changes in entry/exit requirements or changes in fares further down the road.
The Good News
It's not all doom and gloom, however. In the short term, the British pound is at its lowest level against the dollar in 30 years. Hovering at around $1.30 to a pound, it's a 20% decrease from last year's exchange rate. For American travelers, this makes it one of the best times to visit the UK in the past quarter century. But if you can't hop across the pond before the end of the year, don't worry too much. Most experts don't expect to see a big rebound for the pound in the foreseeable future.
It might not seem like a positive for the Brits themselves, but if you were hoping to interact with the locals while visiting, there will be many more UK residents staying home following the dissolution with the EU. Since their currency has dropped in value, they are less likely to take trips to the continent or abroad. Furthermore, visa and passport requirements will probably be mandated for British citizens entering the EU member countries. While that might not seem like a huge obstacle, it's just more barrier against the freedom of movement everyone had been previously used to. An increase in British staycations also has a drawback, however. An influx of visitors to the country in conjunction with more locals staying home could lead to some heavy crowding at popular attractions.
