Just in time for Whitsun, new opportunities for traveling are opening up within Europe.
However, there are numerous regulations for entering the holiday country and when returning to Germany
If you are planning a trip at Pentecost, you should ask yourself several questions during preparation: Which Corona * rules for entry and transit apply in the holiday country and the countries on the travel route?
Can I even enter there?
Do I need specific proof, if applicable?
And what are the rules when you return to Germany?
Vacationing abroad is currently practically impossible without dealing with the details of the federal immigration regulations and the rules of the vacation countries.
"Thorough preparation is even more important this year than usual," says Miriam Hördegen, tourism expert at ADAC Südbayern.
There are basically three categories of countries and regions with special rules for returning to Germany: risk areas, high incidence areas and virus variant areas.
The main criterion for the official classification is the local incidence, but other factors can also play a role.
The currently valid classifications can be found on the website of the Robert Koch Institute.
Special rules for entering Germany apply to people who have been in risk, high incidence or virus variant areas at any time within the previous ten days.
The classification of the destination country on the day of return is decisive.
The status can therefore change during the vacation.
Then a quarantine can suddenly be due, in extreme cases two weeks with no chance of a free test.
A quarantine obligation initially applies when returning from high-risk, high-incidence and virus variant areas.
But there are exceptions.
Whitsun leave & Corona: This applies to risk areas
Countries with a 7-day incidence * between 50 and 100 are considered risk areas. Those who travel there must register their entry in advance on their return via the portal www.einreiseanmeldung.de. You must be able to show proof of registration upon entry. Returnees who have only traveled through a risk area and did not have a stopover there are exempt from this obligation to register. Fully vaccinated, convalescent and people with a negative corona test * are excluded from the ten-day quarantine after vacation in risk areas. The test can be done in the holiday destination. A PCR test may be a maximum of 72 hours old upon entry, and a rapid antigen test a maximum of 48 hours. The test certificate must be submitted with the entry registration.When entering by plane, the test (or proof of vaccination or recovery) must be available when boarding. "The test options at most holiday destinations are good," says ADAC expert Hördegen.
Corona rules on Whitsun leave: high incidence areas
Anyone returning from a high-incidence area does not have to be in quarantine with a full vaccination or recovery.
For all other returnees, free testing from quarantine is possible after five days.
This quarantine obligation does not apply to pure travel through high-incidence areas.
Corona & Whitsun leave: rules for virus variant areas
Countries in which the Indian, South African or Brazilian Corona variant * appear more frequently are classified as virus variant areas.
Anyone who comes back as a holidaymaker from such an area must definitely be in quarantine for 14 days.
Free testing is not possible.
However, entry is only allowed with a negative test certificate.
The following applies here: a PCR test may be 48 hours old, a rapid test a maximum of 24 hours.
Those who test positive in variant areas may only be allowed to return to Germany after quarantine.
No European country is currently considered a variant area.
A short-term upgrade would theoretically be possible.
Anyone who cannot work from home for two weeks in an emergency after a Whitsun trip should at least consider this risk.
Pentecost vacation during Corona: Before departure
In many of the classic vacation destinations for Germans, entry rules also apply.
"When it comes to holidays in Austria, the following applies: You have to be vaccinated, recovered or tested," says ADAC expert Hördegen.
"In addition, an entry registration to be completed in advance is required." This is also checked.
At the Walserberg border crossing there were waiting times of one hour last weekend, says ADAC traffic officer Alexander Kreipl.
If you only want to travel through Austria, you don't need any of this, but you have to make it clear that the destination is not in Austria, for example by means of a booking confirmation from the hotel.
Stopping for fuel stops, for example, is tolerated, but actually not allowed.
Holidays in Italy, Spain and Greece: these are the rules
Italy also requires an entry registration.
This can be found on the ADAC website, for example.
It is to be filled out for all fellow travelers.
A current negative test is required for all travelers older than two years, alternatively proof of vaccination or recovery.
There are also regulations in Italy on the number of people in a car.
The inmates may come from a maximum of three households.
Spain and Greece also require a negative test or proof of vaccination.
“However, such rules are currently changing again and again depending on the country,” says Hördegen.
"It is not said that the rules that apply today still apply on the weekend of Pentecost."
Whitsun vacation in Corona times: travel destinations without entry restrictions
Most travel destinations in Europe are currently designated as risk areas, as are all of Germany's neighboring countries. France and the Netherlands are even high incidence areas, as are other popular travel destinations: Slovenia, Croatia, Turkey or Sweden. The destinations without entry restrictions on return include Portugal (excluding Madeira and the Azores) or the Spanish islands. A test or vaccination certificate is still necessary on the return journey from Mallorca, for example, because otherwise you will not be able to get on the plane.
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