Germany’s chief tourism officer explains if his country will lift travel warning for Turkey
German government’s chief tourism officer said Germany could lift the travel warning for Turkey gradually. The official noted that if infection rates were low in places like the Aegean region, Izmir, Antalya or Bodrum, they would need to open step by step.” He said that if coronavirus case numbers remained low, the government “would have no need to issue longer-term travel warnings.”
The government official also addressed the issue of launching coronavirus testing at airports in Germany which was raised during a meeting of the Federal Health Minister and State Health Ministers. He found this practice extremely important, noting that travelers to Turkey should also have tests there before returning to Germany. He stated that talks with Ankara on the issue were continuing, noting the importance of providing assurances to avoid new chains of infection.
Those who will go abroad from Turkey, can have PCR test for 110 TL. In Germany, people who do not have a test or are Corona positive are quarantined for 14 days.
The German Foreign Office’s tourist travel warning for German citizens does not cover only European Union countries but also Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, Great Britain, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican. The warning, issued for all other countries, including Turkey, expires on 31 August.
Turkey is also on the Robert Koch Institute’s list of risky countries, along with countries such as the United States, Brazil and Russia. Ankara has made several attempts so far to lift Germany’s travel warning. At the beginning of July, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy arrived in Germany, but could not convince the German side.
Turkey is the third country that German tourists prefer to spend their holidays in, after Spain and Italy. More than five million German tourists holidayed in Turkey last year, according to official figures.
