Thanks to a high vaccination rate and reliable regulations, traveling to the Mediterranean has become easier again.

In the second year of the corona pandemic, it is said that a recovery began.

Nearby regions on the Mediterranean benefit more than any other international destination.

Therefore, Turkey, the Greek islands and Mallorca are recovering faster than average.

Rainer Hermann

Editor in politics.

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The figures from Antalya Airport show how quickly the trend has accelerated.

In May there was still a yawning emptiness there.

The number of incoming foreign holidaymakers was only 15 percent of the value in May of the record year 2019. In June it was 40 percent, in July it was even 66 percent.

Four out of five people entering the country are vaccinated or unvaccinated children under the age of twelve, who are exempt from the obligation to test for unvaccinated persons.

Four times more bookings than last year

Borne by this tailwind, Deniz Ugur, CEO of Bentour Reisen, is now expecting a good autumn. The leading Turkey provider in Germany currently receives more than 400 new bookings every day, four times more than in the previous year. This was made possible by the successes with vaccinations and the clear, uniform regulations, he says. In the previous year, the frequent changes would have irritated the travelers.

For Turkey, however, one thing was better regulated in the crisis year 2020. At that time, the country was not classified uniformly. Rather, as in many European countries, regional differences were made. This year, however, Turkey is indiscriminately considered a high-risk area, which means that there is an obligation to register before returning and a quarantine obligation after returning. This does not apply to those who have been vaccinated or who have recovered. The incidence in Turkey is over 200 nationwide, but it varies greatly from region to region. The lowest incidences are found in the Mediterranean provinces, most important for tourism, Antalya and Mugla, where the value is 40. The reason for this is the special vaccination programs in the two provinces. Therefore, a classification as in the previous year would be justified, says Ugur.After all, the current regulation disadvantages children who have to return to quarantine, while vaccinated and recovered adults are exempt from this.

Even if Turkish tourism has not yet reached the level of the record year 2019, the industry is confident. There is talk of new travel habits, the trends of which will emerge during the time of the pandemic and which should continue beyond that. Ugur expects there will be fewer business trips, but more high-quality private trips. In order to protect against the risk of infection, high-quality bookings are being made, and there is much greater demand for exclusive room units than in the past. Individuality and flexibility would become more important. In demand are, for example, the Airport Premium Service to get through the airport quickly, as well as private transfers. At Bentour, every second customer already uses the flex tariff,where you can cancel a trip for a surcharge of 29 euros per adult up to 14 days before departure without giving a reason.

Due to the changed travel habits, the pandemic marks a turning point for the tourism industry.

At the same time, it has to adapt to changes due to climate change.

The industry will put together a catalog of measures that can contribute to resource-saving travel, says Ugur.

In a first step, he wants to use a classification into categories to inform customers about which airlines have which types of aircraft.

Investing in new aircraft should also pay off.