The UK government’s decision to remove Portugal from their list of quarantine-free green list countries for international travel has caused chao for thousands with travel plans.

Following this announcement, many of the more than 112,000 of the Britons will be hurriedly making travel arrangement to return to the UK from Portugal before the amber listing comes into force from Tuesday.

From 04:00 BST on Tuesday, Portugal will join the amber list, meaning holidaymakers will be advised against travel there and any arrivals will be required to self-isolate at home for 10 days.

Josh Woogs, from Bolton, had booked a trip to Lisbon just 10 hours before Portugal’s amber travel listing was announced. He said: “I’m still going, and I’ll just isolate when I’m back. It’s an essential trip for me and I just can’t miss it.”

Many in government have defended this decision due to the presence a new COVID variant first observed in Nepal, as well as a rise in positive COVID cases.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps told Sky News that the emerging Nepal mutation of the Indian variant was of concern and Portugal’s positivity rate has “nearly doubled since the last review.”

Dave Somers, a teacher from Lancashire on holiday for the half term, said “I’m in Portugal right now and feel a lot safer here than in the UK. Luckily all our tests are done, and we are travelling back tomorrow on schedule. The locals here are despairing at our government’s decision though.”

The UK is one of Portugal’s largest visitor markets, especially to the Algarve Resorts which were unsure whether they could reopen took a chance as the UK was allowing travel, and now they are being flooded with cancellations.

Though this has been met with public criticism, the decision has been defended by ministers to do everything they can to ensure that the fourth stage of unlocking can still take place on June 21.