Covid Q&A: Can people from England go on holiday to Wales?

People can move freely around Wales, but they cannot enter England and visit beauty spots such as Southen beach

After lockdown travel restrictions eased in Wales, people are free to travel within the country - but what about hopping over the border?

Stay-at-home rules are also being relaxed in England, meaning a little more freedom there too.

But it does not mean Welsh people can go on holiday over the border just yet, or vice versa.

Here are the main differences in the new rules for people in Wales and England.

What are Wales' lockdown rules?

People enjoyed the seaside at Barry Island on Saturday after the easing of travel restrictions

Wales is now the only country in the UK with no travel restrictions within its border so people are able to move freely, from Monmouth to Morfa Nefyn or Mold to Milford Haven.

That is not just for a day either - since Saturday, self-contained holiday accommodation, including hotels with en-suite facilities, have been allowed to open for people from the same household. But if guests want a meal at a hotel, they must have room service.

With the school Easter holidays now under way, people from Wales are now able to plan day trips, weekends and breaks away this side of the Offa's Dyke.

More people can meet here outside but they cannot go further afield just yet - there is a ban on all but essential travel to and from other UK nations for at least another two weeks.

Can I travel to Wales from England?

Yes... but there's a but. You can only travel across the Wales-England border in either direction for essential reasons like work, providing care or essential shopping if your nearest groceries shop is in Wales.

Similar to Wales, people in England will be allowed to meet outside - including in private gardens - in groups of up to six, or as two households, with social distancing.

• Outdoor meetings and sports to resume in England

• What's the roadmap for lifting lockdown?

• Wales becomes first UK nation to lift travel ban

But people in England cannot socialise too far from their house, with UK ministers urging people to stay local, work from home where possible and minimise the number of journeys they take.

Can people from England holiday in Wales?

No. You are bound to the restrictions of the country where you live.

So even if you live 100 yards from the Welsh border but in England, your travel is more restricted than those living in Wales - you cannot pop to Pembrokeshire or up Snowdonia, however tempting.

Plus, holidays away from home in England will not be allowed for at least another fortnight.

But even if people are then given the green light to take holidays from 12 April, it is likely this will only be within England initially.

It means it will be a while before Welsh beauty spots will be welcoming visitors from over the border.

However, for people living in Wales, the ban on travelling outside the country could be lifted by 12 April.

What do tourist businesses say?

Tenby and other popular Welsh resorts could soon be welcoming tourists again

Geoffrey Lyons-Mound, of Lyons Holidays Parks - which has 10 sites across Wales and Cumbria - said it had been a "long winter" but there were "positive signs".

He added: "About 95% of our customers are from England and 5% are Welsh - but all will be welcomed back.

"You find Welsh people tend to holiday in England and vice versa. But hopefully we will get there in the end."

Catherine Hummel, co-owner of Riverside Camping near Caernarfon, said she was expecting a "softer reopening" because of having to decline English bookings - which she said made up about 90% of their business - but they were making preparations to open.

She said: "We have had to cancel around 100 bookings from England for Easter already, some were double cancellations from last year, so that's a double cancellation for some which isn't nice to do.

"Business-wise, I'm sad we can't welcome guests from England back just yet, but as a parent and member of the community I want to keep staff and guests as safe as possible."

What if I live near the border?

Travelling across the border to visit a beauty spot or on holiday may not be allowed, but what about those in areas such as Monmouthshire, Flintshire, Powys, Shropshire or Gloucestershire, who can see the country next door from their window?

The rules are the same for everyone else in Wales, with a trip into England only permitted for essential reasons.

These include work when the job cannot be done at home, while university and college students are allowed to travel to any of the UK nations for their course.

Llanymynech is split between Shropshire to the right and Powys to the left

However, some of the reasonable excuses could apply more to somebody who lives near the border and has close friends or family the other side of it.

You are able to travel into England to meet others in your support bubble, to attend a wedding, civil partnership or funeral if you are invited, or to vote in an election.

People can also cross the border for things that are "reasonably necessary" where there are "no reasonably practicable alternative".

These include accessing childcare, veterinary services, public services, participating in organised activities for children, or to visit a bank.

You can also provide care or help to a vulnerable person, and to move home.

Subject to public health advice, the Welsh government intends to remove the restrictions on travelling into and out of Wales on 12 April.

• KEEPING FAITH: Binge-watch the the third and final series

• LAND OF THE WILD: SECRETS: Explore the hidden world of Welsh wildlife like never before