Following a statement by the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday 27th November, there will be a new testing regime for arrivals into the UK from 04:00 Tuesday 30th November.
Double-vaccinated adults and children aged 17 to 5 will now need to book a "Day 2" PCR test, and self-isolate until their negative result.
A few need-to-knows:
- Children under 5 do not need to do or book this test
- The test is called a "day 2" test, but it can actually be taken on the day you land in the UK or in any of the two following days
- Make a separate booking per traveller, as you will receive a unique code to enter in your passenger locator form
I would strongly recommend doing the test as soon as practically possible upon arrival, to minimise the isolation period and to maximise any public health benefit in the unlikely event of there being a problem. The best way to do this is upon arrival at the airport.
If you're not travelling immediately, it would make sense to hold off booking your test as requirements can change quickly and new options are coming avaolable.
Collinson Group will hopefully soon have their quick turnaround (in the meantime, their results are pretty prompt for PCR tests anyway) PCR tests at London Gatwick, London Heathrow, London Stanstead, London City and Manchester: click here
Dam Health have a wide variety of locations (not airports but excellent UK-wide coverage) with quick results: click here
Express Test have a few airport locations (London Gatwick, Birmingham and Edinburgh) and also many other locations: click here
Randox generally give quick results and are quite convenient for a home postal test if you live near a Randox drop-off box, as well as a few in-person clinics: click here