Brits heading on Spain holidays this Christmas and New Year can breathe a sigh of relief after airport unions called off planned strike action.
Workers affiliated to CCOO had planned to strike on December 22, 23, 30 and 31 and on January 5 and January 6 at a number of airports across Spain.
They had demanded a bonus that was suspended during the Covid pandemic, threatening industrial action involving as many as 10,000 workers.
The walk-outs would've caused serious disruption at major travel hubs across Spain, potentially cancelling flights of those returning home for the holidays or looking for some winter sun.
However, the strike has been called off after the union reached an agreement with the Ministry of Transport in which the bonus was reinstated.
The breakthrough is at odds with the situation in the UK, where several unions involved in the transport sector are on strike or poised to be, with Brits facing 18 days of travel strikes across both rail and air.
Railway workers with the RMT Union are in the midst of lengthy strike action over a pay dispute, making trips across the country very difficult.
Last week the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union released strike dates for their Border Force, passport and visa staff over Christmas.
The industrial action will take place on December 23, 24, 25 and 26, as well as 28, 29, 30 and 31 at Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Gatwick, Heathrow and Manchester airports, as well as Newhaven port.
Baggage handlers at Heathrow employed by Menzies are also striking, as are some Eurostar workers.
With many people looking to head home and visit friends around Christmas, the winter walk-outs are likely to be particularly disruptive.
We've compiled a list of alternative ways to get around if you don't have a car and find yourself caught up in the strikes.
If you have to get on a plane this Christmas and are concerned about being caught up in the chaos, there are a few things you can do to mitigate the potential disruption.
Evan Day, KAYAK UK country manager, spoke to the Mirror and shared some words of wisdom for those who will be flying on strike days and advice about preparations they can make ahead of time.
One piece of advice he offered is to buy a flexi-cancellation ticket if possible.
"You can get flexi-cancellation tickets, whether as part of the standard base price or as an add on," Evan said.
"It offers flexibility in terms of changing date of the flight. We have some useful filters on kayak which means you can search for flexible flights."
Evan also recommended booking tickets through a credit card to speed up the refund process and to offer you "an extra layer of protection".
If you do end up claiming for a refund rather than an alternate flight, he advises asking for money rather than a voucher so you have more flexibility later on.
