As well as costing thousands of life, plunging countries into lockdown and business into chaos, coronavirus has also put a stop to countless families’ holiday plans.
However, leaders of some of the destinations most popular with tourists have started to discuss when we might be able to return.
Countries like Spain, Italy, Greece and Turkey have hosted many of our summer holidays for generations.
But with much of Europe placed on lockdown over recent weeks, when tourism might start up again has remained uncertain.
Here’s what governments and tourist boards of Spain, Italy and Turkey have said about what this summer might look like.
Spain
Spain’s death toll from the virus is beginning to slow, but the future of holidays in the country are still under discussion, says the Spanish tourism minister.
And Reyes Maroto hasn’t ruled out restrictions staying in place once international tourism restarts, the Liverpool Echo reports.
Speaking to Spanish newspaper El Pais, she said: “We have to guarantee, when international tourism opens, that the person who comes to Spain is a safe person.
“The issue of borders will be accompanied by the evolution of the health crisis.
“Therefore, I do not have the solution of when [they will be able to open].
“On how you will be able to enjoy our beaches, we are defining different scenarios.
“It is very important that the sanitary recommendations are maintained, we are going to have to internalise what we are already doing now, hand washing, social distancing … even on the beaches.
“Those patterns will be in our day to day for a time, you cannot take a step back.”
Turkey
Turkey is still in the critical weeks of the Covid-19 outbreak, but the country is still hopeful tourists may be able to return before the end of spring.
Professor İlhami Çelik says life will likely return to normal by the end of Ramadan, which is a month of fasting for Muslims that will start in late April.
According to Çelik, a member of the Health Ministry’s Coronavirus Science Board, the silver lining is the likelihood of a downward trend in infections after it peaks in the third week of April.
Speaking to the Turkish language daily newspaper, Sabah, he said the higher the public compliance with the board’s measures, the earlier normalisation will return to Turkey.
Çelik says people have to comply with government measures to help things get back to normal faster.
He said: “If we do this and if temperatures rise, I believe life will return to normal in time for Ramadan Bayram. I am hopeful.”
And the country’s culture and tourism minister said Turkey’s tourism season is expected to be on hold until the end of May.
Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said: “Hopefully, we will see that tourism activities will start again during the Ramadan Feast.”
The minister also noted that he expects flight schedules to return to normal by the end of June after airlines cancelled most flights to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
Ersoy said air traffic from Asia would likely be opened first, followed by Russia, then the Balkans and Europe. Domestic flights would also restart, he said.
Italy
Italy was brought to its knees by coronavirus, which has claimed the lives of thousands of Italians.
The country’s tourism industry employs 4.2m people and the sector was already reporting its “worst crisis in recent history” at the end of February, before lockdown measures were announced.
Italy’s tourism secretary Lorenza Bonaccorsi told AFP: “It will take one or two years to get back to where we were, but 2020 might as well be written off.
“It is still impossible to say when Italy… will come out of the health emergency.”
Italy’s Confturismo tourism association estimated the crisis would result in lost income of 22bn euros.
It’s not yet known when the measures, including restrictions on movement, will be lifted. Some medical experts advise that social distancing must continue until the end of the year.
Tourism secretary Bonaccorsi said: “This might be the time to move away from mass tourism, towards one more respectful of the environment.
“You will not see the long queues outside the Colosseum you used to.”
The tourism association Corti also thinks the industry will have to change. It said: “Who will have the courage to get on a high-speed Freccia Rossa (train) carriage filled with 80 passengers or a low-cost airline with 270?”
Greece
Greece is expected to lose billions of euros in tourism as the mainland and islands close their borders to visitors, with 65% of hotels facing bankruptcy.
A study by the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels found that 65% of hoteliers say that they are “likely” to go bankrupt, with 18.3% saying it was “most likely”.
While there are hopes that the tourism industry could start again by July, many companies and tour operators are already struggling.
The chamber’s president, Alexandros Vassilikos, explained : “The tourism market will open slowly and painfully and in the meantime there will be a lot to be seen.
“Right now there is no data on which seasonal hotels will open after the pandemic as there is zero demand.
“There are many questions and no conclusions can be drawn about anything.”
In its package of measures sent to the Tourism Ministry, the chamber has proposed for hotels and lodges to follow new hygiene practices once they begin operating again.
Source: When Spain, Italy, Turkey and Greece hope to lift coronavirus travel restrictions – Chronicle Live