The coronavirus did not deter us from traveling: in this country, entrepreneurs, unlike Palanga, do not cry

Restless vacations waiting

When the first wave of COVID-19 weakened, we remembered old contacts and booked a cabin in the Istria region of Croatia, by the sea, in mid-August. To make it more fun, we invited friends from Lithuania. Feelings or fate (they did not find a suitable time and a reservation offer), but they did not come together, and well, because it is doubtful to decide to travel from Lithuania, which traditionally promised to build anti-coronary barricades in late July-early August. , a mandatory 14-day quarantine.

I won’t say that we were calm in Brussels too. With the growing number of new coronavirus cases in Europe, not only Lithuania but also other countries have introduced restrictions. We have constantly checked whether Belgium has excluded Croatia from the “red zone”, where more than 100 new cases were recorded per day in August and travel from neighboring Balkan countries was restricted at all. No, the Belgians only declare that certain regions are dangerous and, so far, the Croatian peninsula of Istria is not even colored “orange”, when only quarantine and tests on return are recommended.

The next question is, will Croatia admit tourists from Belgium? Croatia cracked down on austerity measures in the spring, as did Lithuania, and Belgium invaded the leaders of the second wave of COVID-19 in early August with around 500 new cases a day. But the Christmas season in Croatia is sacred. After all, in this country, tourism accounts for 17 percent. GDP and any restriction on tourist flows, as the Croats themselves said, would send their government to the guillotine.

It is true that you had to do the “homework”: fill in a special form and print it together with the reservation receipt (it was not necessary for anyone to show or send it, but about the fall of the walls, later) .

The last question: we will drive, will the transit countries (Germany, Austria, Slovenia) fail? But looking at Re-open EU (an EU website with information on national travel policies and restrictions on the coronavirus) and local sources of information, everything seems to be in order. So on a trip.

Congestion was not dissipated by COVID-19

On Friday afternoon we left Brussels overheated (over 30 degrees Celsius).

If you think that the highways of Europe, especially Germany, are empty because people no longer travel because of the coronavirus, you are wrong. The crown is a crown, but August is a holiday season, just like traditional road repairs. So expecting to go through Germany or Austria without congestion was naive.

But it wasn’t as bad as we saw it after two weeks of heading back to the Austro-Slovenian border, where tourists, ready to enjoy the last days of summer in the south, were stuck in traffic for up to 12 hours. It is true that there are fewer cars on the roads with non-German numbers. Last year the roads were packed with Belgians, Dutch, British, Italians, Poles etc, this year only drives.

In the late afternoon we arrived at the hostel in Munich. A small and quite empty hotel, from the cars with luggage on the roof of the parking lot, it can be assumed that its guests are also travelers in transit.

In Munich itself, there were few signs of coronavirus on Friday night. Some people in masks, waitresses in bars, too, although the masks generally go down below the nose. Also in the cafeteria or restaurant registration is required: name, surname, place of residence, telephone.

The morning continued the journey, but it seemed that all of Germany was ready to travel that Saturday morning. Google Maps Navigator immediately seemed insane in response to congestion and a change in recommended routes. Up to the Austrian border, almost constantly in traffic. In Austria, a little better, but the navigator showed that he was completely wrong in Slovenia, and even worse at the main border crossings between Slovenia and Croatia. So, we headed to Italy, a bit flexible, but better to drive than to bake in traffic jams (plus, a very scenic road, a “descent” from the Alps).

By the way, about crossing borders: no one stopped anywhere. We don’t even notice the borders between Belgium and Luxembourg and between Luxembourg and Germany. On the German-Austrian, Austrian-Italian, Italian-Slovenian borders, also non-stop. Even on the border between Slovenia and Croatia, which is not a member of the Schengen area, border guards have only shown a hand sign: travel. So there was no need to show any pre-prepared “tasks”.

Differences between last year and this year

Finally sunny Croatia. What there was is not to say too much about the good weather, the wild and civilized beaches, the warm and transparent Mediterranean, the delicious food, etc. And what was not, go see for yourself.

We stayed in Istria, in the western part of Croatia; As mentioned, we are not coming to this region for the first time, but also closer to home (if everyone starts to close the borders again, it is possible to return to Brussels in one day), as well as in Split or Dubrovnik. , this region appeared much better in the coronavirus statistics.

How is this crown spring different from the previous ones? In stores, as in many countries, only with masks. In bars and cafes, service personnel are also masked, but usually with a mask around their neck. If you think the beaches are separate, masks are worn and social distance is observed, no, tourists, apparently, do not go to COVID-19 by the sea. Similarly, the coronavirus was not thought to visit nightclubs, but when Slovenia declared that Croatian nightclubs were the main source of infection in Slovenia, restrictions were imposed.

Are there fewer tourists? Subjectively speaking, maybe a little. Officially: Croatia recently announced that it has received around 70 percent. tourists in August compared to the same period last year. German flows in particular increased, as did the number of Poles. If before there was no shortage of Germans in Istria, now it is a real “occupation”: most cars with German numbers on the roads and German companies (possibly Austrian, of course) on the beaches. There were also tourists from Poland, the Czech Republic, Italy, the Balkans, etc.

Lithuanian, Latvian or Estonian car numbers were lost, and there were hardly any travelers from Benelux countries, Finland and Great Britain, which weren’t really short before (Croatian newsstands even had the availability of the Financial Times, the Daily Mail or another British press – now not much).

To make less tourists, perhaps the following observation will also say: if you have been to Croatia, you have probably seen pigs roasted on a spit in restaurants or in elevators, on large barbecues. So this time, for me at least, I was unlucky enough to try this delicacy.

And the Croats themselves, most of whom are involved in the tourism industry in one way or another in the summers, did not complain about the question of how the Palanga entrepreneurs were doing this summer, but said: “50 out of 50 is better than we feared for COVID-19. “

PS: I forgot to mention probably the most important issue: the price of accommodation in Croatia. For three small rooms with kitchens, we paid 110 euros a day for a separate house by the sea.