Lufthansa will allow passengers to check in with new digital vaccination certificates.

The German airline said Thursday (June 17) that travelers would be able to show the proof of inoculation on their phones or on a printout.

On some routes it will also be possible to use the certificates to check in by smartphone.

Speaking to Reuters, Lufthansa's Klaus Froese said it was a vital step towards reviving air travel.

"We have, because there was a huge demand for touristic travel, we have added 40 destinations in the Mediterranean Sea. But for most of them it is necessary to show a prove of vaccination. And to make it as easy as possible for our travellers we have streamlined our procedures. We strive for automatisation and standardization of the check-in."

Germany last week started issuing QR codes identifying those who are fully vaccinated.

And confidence seems to be returning.

TUI - the world's biggest holiday company - says Germans are now booking trips at faster rate than they did before the crisis.

Lufthansa says passengers will be able to check they have all the right forms by contacting one of its service centers up to 72 hours before they fly.

"We need two things: We need to know what document the traveller needs for land A, lets say Spain. We inform the traveller about this in a very easy way by him being able to enter his travel route in our website and we then inform him what he needs. If he is not certain what he needs, then our service centre makes sure that we check that he has the necessary documents for him or her."

EU countries agreed last week to ease restrictions, and allow fully vaccinated tourists to avoid tests and quarantine.

They also broadened the list of EU countries from which it is safe to travel.

Lufthansa and other airlines will be hoping it's all in time to avoid another lost summer.