It was only a matter of time before the Foreign Office issued a warning against traveling to Spain. Because the number of corona infections on the Iberian Peninsula and Mallorca has been rising dramatically for weeks. Regions such as Catalonia with Barcelona as well as Aragón, Navarra, La Rioja, Castile and Léon, the Basque Country and the capital region of Madrid have been considered risk areas for several weeks – last Saturday this classification was extended to the whole country. The only exception: the Canary Islands, where the number of infections is still at a low level.
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Since the number of infections is currently rising again in some other holiday destinations such as Croatia, Portugal and Italy, holidaymakers must always expect that other countries will soon be declared risk areas and the Federal Foreign Office will issue a travel warning. But what does that mean for holidaymakers on site? Do you have to go home immediately? And what applies to those who have now booked a trip there? Holidaymakers need to know that now:
1. Travel warning is not the same as travel ban
Basically, despite the travel warning, it is not forbidden to stay or travel to the respective country to which this warning applies. “A travel warning does not mean that you are not allowed to travel at all. You are free to travel anywhere – whenever you want, as long as your holiday destination has not issued any entry restrictions, ”explains the North Rhine-Westphalia consumer advice center on its website.
This means that holidaymakers who are currently on Mallorca or mainland Spain do not have to break off their tents immediately and travel home. You can continue your vacation as planned if nothing has changed significantly in the country, in the hotel or on the flights due to Corona. In any case, you should check this immediately.
However, vacationers in high-risk areas still have to be careful: If you go on vacation despite the travel warning, you must consider that the Foreign Office has already ruled out any further return campaigns. So if the situation on site and in Germany worsens during your stay and flights are canceled due to a lockdown, it may not be certain how and when you can return to Germany.
2. Free travel cancellation for package holidays
Package holidaymakers should immediately contact their tour operator if they receive a travel warning or their destination is classified as a risk area. The specifications they make in such a case are different: For example, Tui canceled all trips to Spain and the Balearic Islands up to and including August 24th and requested vacationers who were there to return within the next seven days because the vacation in the form booked is no longer feasible. Rebookings and services not provided will be reimbursed.
Alltours, on the other hand, has already canceled all trips to Spain up to and including September 15, but is not suspending Mallorca trips. Guests can decide for themselves whether they want to travel to the island and, if necessary, rebook free of charge. The company also continues to accept bookings on the island as the company's own Allsun hotels remain open. "We leave it up to the customers whether they want to spend their vacation in Mallorca", says Alltours owner Willi Verhuven.
According to § 651h BGB, vacationers can in principle terminate their package tour free of charge if unavoidable, extraordinary circumstances occur at the destination or in its immediate vicinity that significantly impair the implementation of the package tour or the transport of people to the destination.
3. Individual travelers are left behind
But if you have booked your trip individually, i.e. flight and hotel individually and separately, you cannot simply cancel free of charge – even if the destination area develops into a corona hotspot or a travel warning is issued. "If the flight ticket does not allow rebooking or cancellation, the consumer has no right to a refund of the ticket price," explains Beate Wagner from the NRW consumer center to FOCUS Online. Only saved expenses such as taxes and fees could be reclaimed if the flight was not taken.
The situation is no different for booked accommodation such as holiday apartments and hotel rooms: "That depends on the cancellation conditions of the respective contract partner abroad," explains Wagner. At best, one could hope for goodwill from the airline and also from the provider of the accommodation, but in this case there is no claim to a full reimbursement of the ticket or the hotel costs.
4. Obligation to test when returning from risk area
Since August 8th, travelers returning to Germany from a risk area have to present a corona test (PCR test). This must not be older than 48 hours or can be done free of charge upon arrival at the airport, at the train station or at motorway service stations or within 72 hours afterwards at a doctor or, for example, the health department. Until the results are available, vacationers have to go into quarantine. Those who cannot be tested also have to be in quarantine at home for up to 14 days, depending on the state.
In the event of a breach of the stated obligations to report, test, provide evidence or to quarantine at home, the competent authorities can impose fines.
5. Be careful with travel insurance – they may not pay in an emergency
When it comes to insurance, holidaymakers in risk areas and countries with travel warnings must also be careful: Because it could be that the international travel health insurance excludes benefits in the event of a travel warning and during a pandemic, warns the consumer advice center in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Holidaymakers should clarify this with their health insurance and / or their travel health insurer before traveling. Because if a corona disease occurs abroad that needs to be treated, enormous costs can arise, which the holidaymaker has to bear himself if the benefits are excluded.