Friedhelm Ost, a German politician and journalist with the Christian Democratic Party, described his impressions of Turkey and the coronavirus measures taken in the tourism sector, in his article titled “strict measures for Antalya holidaymakers” on his blog called Der Republik.
Friedhelm Ost, a journalist and also a member of the Christian Democratic Party who served as deputy minister to Helmut Kohl, one of Germany's former prime ministers said: "compared to the resorts on Germany's North and Baltic Sea coasts and Mallorca, the measures taken in Turkey are beyond an example to the world."
According to a written statement from the Ministry of culture and Tourism, Friedhelm Ost who met Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy met in Antalya at the weekend, shared with the German Press that Turkey's safe tourism practices are an example.
In his article titled "Antalya and strict measures for holidaymakers" he noted that Minister Ersoy had done a remarkable job, adding “when compared to Germany's North and Baltic Sea resorts and Mallorca, the measures taken in Turkey are even beyond an example to the world.”
Ost stated that hotels and restaurants in Turkey's most preferred holiday regions were fighting the Kovid-19 virus, emphasizing that Minister Ersoy was one of the most experienced tourism experts.
Friedhelm Ost said that visitors who wanted to enjoy the holiday in Turkey this summer should necessarily comply with “mask, distance and hygiene rules”, noting that warnings for tourists are friendly and kind, but equally determined and effective.
Friedhelm Ost detailed all the stages faced by holidaymakers from Antalya airport to hotel and noted that hotel operators were perfectly organized against the requirement to have a Coronavirus test 48 hours before boarding a flight back to Germany. He also gave the following information to his readers:
"Although the federal government's travel warnings for most of Turkey continue, these warnings have been lifted for the provinces of Antalya, Aydin, Izmir and Mugla since the beginning of August. However, holidaymakers have to undergo a Coronavirus test 48 hours before boarding the flight back to Germany. These are perfectly organized by hotel operators and are carried out in a private room of the hotel in a few minutes by medical professionals in cooperation with a laboratory. A day later, the holidaymaker gets the test result. This is just in time for the return trip. If the test is positive, the tourist must undergo quarantine and medical treatment in Turkey."
Ost emphasized that hotels, airlines, airports and numerous other areas had witnessed an economic collapse due to corona this year and despite the summer season had largely passed, 2 to 3 million tourists from Germany could be expected to visit said destination this year.
