Cologne-Bonn Airport Survey This is how travelers experience the stricter Corona rules
Cologne/Bonn · Spain is officially considered a Corona high incidence area as of this Tuesday. This brings with it correspondingly stricter rules for travelers. Many vacationers were surprised by these, as our survey at Cologne-Bonn Airport shows.
19-year-old Mira Bovi from Mönchengladbach is a bit unlucky. She returned from her vacation in Mallorca on Tuesday of all days, the day on which Spain's classification as a Corona high incidence area, announced last Friday by the German government, officially came into force - with the corresponding tightened rules for travelers. Like many other vacationers, she was surprised by the new rules on the popular Balearic island. "I now have to spend five days in quarantine because I have not been vaccinated," she says after landing at Cologne-Bonn Airport. The negative rapid antigen test she was able to present on departure in Palma de Mallorca does not save her from this. Her 20-year-old companion Kai Stange is luckier. He has been vaccinated.
The two of them radiate a serenity that is apparently shared by many vacationers. Until 11:59 p.m. on Monday, they could have returned home with a negative Corona test without the threat of quarantine. Since Tuesday, proof of full vaccination or of having survived Corona disease must now be provided to avoid a 10-day quarantine. It can be shortened with another negative test after five days. According to information from tour operator Tui only some tourists wanted to leave the island prematurely or cancel already booked stays. "Initial information from Playa de Palma indicates that guests want to continue to spend their vacations in Mallorca. They feel in good hands locally, avoid larger crowds and are for the most part already vaccinated," Tui spokesman Aage Dünhaupt told dpa as recently as Saturday.
200,000 package holidaymakers from Germany are currently vacationing in Spain
According to the German Travel Association (DRV), about 200,000 package travelers from Germany are currently vacationing in Spain, 60 percent of them on the Balearic Islands with Mallorca. In addition, there are about 200,000 individual tourists.
Too much hand luggage led to long waiting times
Last weekend, passengers at Cologne-Bonn Airport were faced with unusually long waiting times during check-in. However, the reason for this was probably not the checks of corona tests and vaccination certificates. As reported by the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger on Tuesday, a staff shortage at a security company caused the delays. The federal police also attributed the congestion to "the fact that many travelers were carrying more than one piece of hand luggage." Because of the Corona situation, however, only one piece of hand luggage per passenger was allowed.
Original text: Bernhard Hartmann
Translation: Mareike Graepel
