TRAVEL agents are continuing to advise customers that it is safe to travel to the Basque region of Spain despite Saturday's bombing at an airport near Barcelona which injured more than 30 people. The injured included an Irish woman and her 10 year old son.
The blast was one of five violent incidents admitted by the Basque separatist organisation ETA over the weekend.
The Department of Foreign Affairs is advising anyone travelling to the region to exercise "normal vigilance" and does not believe people need to cancel their holiday arrangements.
The Irish Travel Agents' Association has received a large number of calls from anxious holiday makers and has been seeking to reassure them. However, the association says there is no possibility of travel agents refunding customers who cancel their booking.
A Spanish embassy official told The Irish Times he perceived "no special new threat" from ETA. "The decision whether to travel is obviously for every individual to consider, but you have to remember that there was a bomb hoax in Dublin city recently as well, so there are dangers everywhere."
Travel agents are reporting few cancellations and are happy with reassurances given to them by the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Mr Brendan Moran of the association said: "I am assured that the Reus bomb went off prematurely and that ETA's campaign is directed toward economic targets, not tourists.