400 guests with covid leave Turkey daily
For those who still have a vacation ahead, the last decade of the summer turned into unforeseen complications. The already few budget resort destinations available to Russians are either tightening the rules of entry and stay, like Greece, Montenegro and Turkey, or straining in anticipation of new disaster strikes, like the south of Russia.
What caused the next restrictions, how long they will last and where they are not, we found out with the help of experts.
In the province of Antalya, leading in the number of guests from the Russian Federation, despite forest fires, sick tourists were counted separately from their own citizens and were stunned: every day 400 guests sick with covid leave the country, who 7-10 days ago, according to the certificates presented to them upon arrival, were completely healthy. Turkish MPs demand from the authorities the urgent introduction of strict restrictive measures, despite the high tourist season.
“Officially, we have 2,500 cases a day,” says Alina, our compatriot who lives in Antalya with her Turkish husband. – It seems like it already happened, but now something is clearly happening – all doctors have canceled vacations. My husband’s brother works in a hospital, wanted to rest in the last week of August, but the head physician called him and begged him to postpone his vacation. Like, the epidemiological situation is getting out of control.
– The incidence is growing, intensive care units are overcrowded, – confirms Alina’s husband’s brother. – We are waiting for the strengthening of border controls. Our authorities foresee a massive influx of refugees from Afghanistan, and they can penetrate the border in the most unexpected ways. They are, of course, very sorry! But what have they got there with the covid, it’s even scary to imagine! Now they have no time for registering cases and not for vaccination tests!
– The authorities turn a blind eye to another outbreak of the disease in order to preserve tourism, and as a result, this disease will kill tourism in the bud! – declares in the local press the people’s choice from the province of Antalya, commenting on my request to the Turkish Ministry of Health. – Without exception, all resorts of Antalya fell into the “red zone”, Americans and Germans refuse paid tours.
After analyzing the situation, the Turkish authorities came to the conclusion that the epidemiological situation in the resort area of the country began to deteriorate (in comparison with June it is twice worse) after the curfew and special permission (HES-code) for travel in public transport were canceled. It is these restrictions that may be returned in the very near future, as Greek Crete has already done, where a curfew has been in effect since August 19th from 1 am to 6 am. For violation – a fine of 200 thousand euros (more than 7 million rubles.). Also, entertainment establishments and catering are prohibited from turning on music even during the day, so as not to attract crowds of tourists. As for the entry rules for foreigners, in the last ten days of August they tightened throughout Greece: even vaccinated guests are required to undergo a medical examination and PCR testing on arrival (until August 20, this was carried out selectively). According to the authorities, “in order to stop the spread of the coronavirus (until August 27, further as appropriate), tourists from third countries, including their spouses or persons with whom they have entered into an agreement on cohabitation, are prohibited from entering Greece, and tourists are not allowed to enter the mainland. arriving on the islands ”. Also, a mandatory electronic form PFL (electronic passenger search) has been introduced for everyone, by which it is easy to find this tourist, wherever he disappears.
“It’s not said directly, but it means Afghan refugees,” they respond to a request to “decipher” the meaning of the new bans in the capital’s travel agency. “They are fleeing from the Taliban by all means – both by swimming and on foot. It is easier for refugees to get to the islands. They can also enter from a third country or marry someone. Nothing personal, but a sharp influx of Afghan migrants can significantly worsen the epidemiological picture. It was not for nothing that the Greeks erected 40 km of the fortress wall on the Turkish border. There have not been such walls in Europe since the days of Berlin.
Montenegro has also revised the rules for entering its territory for foreigners, returning the requirement for a mandatory PCR test at entry, which it recently canceled. True, so far this has been reported only on the authorities’ twitter, and the details and date of introduction will be announced in an official message. If you believe the tour operators, against this background, the popularity of Egypt jumped up among vacationers, although, contrary to their hopes, it did not fall in price.
– With the launch of direct flights to resorts, we all expected a reduction in prices for package tours, – comments in the capital’s travel agency, – but this did not happen. And still, in August they snapped up Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada and even less famous and more expensive resorts.
According to experts, a week in August for two in Hurghada in 5 * is about 120 thousand rubles, in Sharm el-Sheikh -145 thousand, in Soma Bay – 155 thousand rubles (includes a round-trip flight from Moscow, accommodation according to the system ” all inclusive “, medical insurance and transfer). For comparison, a similar tour in Sochi – from 82 thousand rubles, to the Crimea – from 114 thousand.
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