The wearing of face coverings indoors in Spain has been dropped from Wednesday in a big boost for travellers.
This means masks will no longer be required to be worn in public spaces including bars, restaurants, cafes, theatres, nightclubs, gyms and more.
Announcing the move Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said: “We are making progress in returning to pre-pandemic normality.
“The success of the vaccination campaign allows us to now enter a new stage in the fight against Covid-19.”
Face masks are still mandatory on public transport including buses, trains and planes.
Nose and mouth coverings are also required in spaces frequented by people vulnerable to the virus, such as hospitals, care homes and pharmacies.
They are recommended to still be worn at cultural or sporting events with a large number of spectators.
Individuals are now being left to decide whether to wear a mask, according to their level of suspectibility to the virus, spaces they go to and precautionary measures they want to take, according to Spain’s government.
Spanish Health Minister Carolina Darias said the move was thanks to the country’s high vaccination rate and decline in severity of the disease.
Scrapping the requirement comes nearly two years after the mandate was first imposed, on May 20, 2020.
This means the country is now in line with most European Union members, who masks are no longer a mandatory requirement when indoors.
Italy and Portugal still require face coverings inside.
