Travel warning for the Germans' favorite island: Mallorca. There are serious changes for travelers - also due to the measures of the Spanish government.
- The Federal Foreign Office has issued a travel warning for Spain, including the Balearic Islands - it was expected after the rising number of coronavirus * infections .
- First tour operators are canceling package tours - vacationers are asked to return. You have to go to the test.
- The state government wants to create a "safe corridor".
- Here you will find the news from Germany as well as the current case numbers as a card.
Update from August 15, 6:55 p.m.: The Balearic Islands hit the travel warning from Germany hard. The economy is now the main concern. After the travel warning, there were already numerous reactions, as reported by the Mallorca newspaper. The Balearic state government wants to continue working with the tourist markets. The aim is to create a "safe corridor" between Mallorca and the most important tourist countries such as Germany .
Further corona measures are apparently not currently planned. Also, that the regional government had already introduced a number of restrictions in the past few weeks, such as the mask requirement, hygiene requirements for restaurants or the closure of dance halls. Compliance with these measures should therefore only be monitored through increased controls.
Mallorca: Corona numbers are increasing - 114 people are currently in the hospital
The situation in Mallorca is under control despite the rising corona numbers, according to the state government. On Friday, the Balearic Islands reported 134 new infections with the corona virus . On Thursday, according to the Mallorca magazine, there were 264 cases, almost twice as many. The total number of people infected since the pandemic began rose to 4,285 cases.
According to the authorities, the cases have now risen again. However, the situation is not comparable to that at the beginning of the pandemic, as the health system is significantly less stressed. Between 70 and 90 percent of those infected would have no symptoms. A total of 114 people are currently being treated in the hospital for a corona infection. 35 of them only because they could not be isolated at home.
Corona: Mallorca reacts in shock - Spahn remains rigorous and has a "drastic" message for returnees
Mallorca / Munich - The travel warning issued on Friday for the Balearic Islands - including Mallorca - is already having an impact on tourists and local gastronomy. According to the German Travel Association, around 30,000 people from Germany are currently in the Balearic Islands, most of them on Mallorca.
Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn understands their concerns - but is clearly behind the travel warning:
The travel warning for Spain is drastic for many. But it is necessary in view of the dynamics. The pandemic is not over. Returning travelers have to be quarantined at home until the test result is negative. With perseverance and team spirit, we also master the travel time
- Jens Spahn (@jensspahn) August 15, 2020But not only the travel warnings, but also the new measures introduced by the Spanish government are likely to change the holiday on site - the Spanish government is also tightening the regulations to contain the pandemic again.
Travel warning for Mallorca: What holidaymakers can expect now - worry about return flights
If you read Facebook groups about Mallorca, you don't seem to notice much about Corona outside of the applicable hygiene regulations - you can even read that Mallorca is quieter than in Germany. The main concern of travelers is the return flights: is it safe to leave the island if you go on vacation now?
The tour operator TUI says it has "with a heavy heart" canceled all package tours by August 24th - and calls on those who remained on the island to return within seven days - the rebooking is free for package travelers. The situation is different for individual travelers - locally and still in Germany - they have to take care of travel changes * and any cancellation fees themselves. On Tuesday, the tour operators want to reassess the situation - until then, experts assume that further flights could be canceled: So also the planned return flight ..
Further predictions are currently not possible - the situation can change again at any time. "Anyone who has booked Mallorca for the autumn holidays cannot cancel their trip for free tomorrow," said the lawyer for travel law , Sabine Fischer-Volk of the dpa.
Travel warning for Mallorca: increasing numbers of infections, but almost only minor cases?
In figures, the infection rate * on site currently looks like this : According to the Mallorca newspaper, the Balearic Islands have currently registered 1506 active coronavirus cases , 134 more than the day before. Only in Mallorca are currently 122 people being treated in hospitals, 17 of them in intensive care units - most of the cases were symptom-free * or mild.
But even an increase in minor cases can be tricky: For the Spanish government, the increasing number of infections across the country is reason enough to reintroduce stronger measures. And these should also have an impact on the holiday feeling in Mallorca in 2020: bars and discos have had to close again since August 14 , restaurants are allowed to stay open until 1 a.m. And smokers also have to adjust: You can only smoke outdoors if the minimum distance of two meters can be maintained.
Travel warning for Mallorca: more break-ins in bars - is the island completely changing?
The current situation is likely to have serious economic effects *, especially for gastronomy - which is also operated by German emigrants . As the owner of the Krübel-Stadels reports on Bild.de, the existential fear is going around again. She fears that "winter will be a catastrophe" and is particularly afraid of break-ins. She had been broken into again in the past few days.
How many of the bars and discos with cult status will survive the near future is completely open. However, the Facebook group is already dreaming of the 2021 season opening. The coronavirus could be more deadly than the Spanish flu virus, say US researchers. (kat / dpa * Merkur.de is part of the Germany-wide Ippen digital editorial network )
List of rubric lists: © Clara Margais / dpa