Monday, August 09, 2021
Fire disaster in southern Europe
Germans fly on vacation despite fires
The forest fires in southern Europe continue to rage – nevertheless, most German vacationers do not cancel their booked trips. So far, there has been no wave of cancellations. However, the inquiries from German tour operators are increasing.
The German travel industry does not currently see the summer season at risk from the devastating fires in parts of Greece, Turkey and Italy. For the people who lived in the areas, the fires were a single disaster, said the travel association DRV. “The holiday hotels of German tour operators, especially on the coasts, are only marginally affected, if at all.”
According to the information, the industry recorded a growing need for information among holidaymakers who now want to travel to Greece or Turkey. They asked the organizers whether their holiday region or their hotel was affected by the fires. “However, there is hardly any desire to cancel or rebook,” said the DRV, which represents organizers and travel agencies. The organizers observed the situation on site very closely in order to react quickly if the worst came to the worst.
In Greece, the fires rage particularly violently on the island of Evia and on the Peloponnese peninsula, and the north of Athens is also badly affected. The regions are not among the traditionally strong destinations for tour operator trips from Germany. According to local authorities, the situation in the coastal regions of Turkey affected by forest fires relaxed at the beginning of the week.
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