Johannesburg, Dec 16 (IANS): South African Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu welcomed the UK's decision to lift travel restrictions to the country in the wake of the outbreak of the Omicron Covid variant.

"The announcement by the UK government is a step in the right direction for the South Africa's tourism sector," Xinhua news agency reported citing the Minister as saying.

"When South Africa was added to the red list last month, the implementation of the hotel quarantine, instead of home quarantine was a huge deterrent for the Brits who were considering travelling to South Africa at a time when tourism was just beginning to recover," she added.

The UK imposed travel restrictions when the Omicron Covid-19 variant was detected in South Africa late last month.

The UK government removed 11 countries including South Africa from the red list.

"The UK government has come just in time to allow families and friends to unite over the festive season. We hope to welcome British travellers very soon," said Sisulu.

"The Omicron variant is something we continue to take seriously and our scientists are monitoring its trajectory, to contain the virus and ensure the appropriate robust safety measures are in place," she said.

"South African borders remain open and our government and tourism industry has been working extremely hard to implement safety regulations so that we are ready for all inbound visitors."

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation also welcomed the removal of the restrictions.