Tour operator organisation ANVR has said travel advice for people holidaying abroad is too confusing and that the information should be included in a European guideline.

Such a guideline would make clear what the rules at the holiday destination are and what people can expect on their return in terms of self-isolation, spokesman Frank Oostdam told NOS radio.

‘It would help. You would prevent a situation in which people are sitting around a pool in Bulgaria and the Dutch are told to go home while the Brits and the Germans are thinking: what is going on here? It would be better to organise this at a European level,’ he said.

The EU has issued a list of countries outside Europe from which visitors can travel and that should extend to a common policy where travel advice is concerned, Ooostdam said.

In the last week travel advice issued by different countries has varied significantly. The UK has issued what is in effect a blanket ban on travel to Spain, including the islands, by imposing a 14 day quarantine on returning holidaymakers.

The Netherlands and Germany have advised tourists to avoid certain areas, such as the Barcelona metropolitan area. The Dutch have also added the Belgian province of Antwerp to their list of places where travel is not recommended.