Will it be possible to take holidays in Spain? – NRK Urix – Foreign News and Documentaries

– It will be a different summer, says Marit Gjelsten, who runs a real estate company on the Costa Blanca.

Spain is still closed. There are no direct flights from abroad to destinations such as Alicante and Malaga.

– Those who are permanent residents are usually a little older on duty. Their cycle is that they have summer at home in Norway, then the children and grandchildren use the property in summer. It is still uncertain whether they can go down, says Gjelsten.

It is also difficult to plan a hotel vacation or rent a vacation home.

Waiting for message

– We expect a layer of between 50 and 60 percent this summer. It is usually 100 percent.

On Monday May 11, the hotel’s director, Victoria Puche, opens the Calas de Alicante boutique hotel.

But that does not happen. They simply have no guests. No orders

– We want to open on June 1, but we cannot open the hotel if we do not have guests. First, Spain must open the borders. So airlines have to start operating.

The hotel will place a contamination package in each room with a mask, gloves, and hand spray. She emphasizes that Alicante has a total of five good public and private hospitals that have had no capacity issues during the crown eruption in Spain.

“It is crucial that we give our clients enough security to come and spend their holidays here,” says Victoria Puche, also president of the hotel association in Alicante.

In countries like Greece, Croatia, Italy, France, Portugal and Spain, the uncertainty before summer is great.

The tourism industry in Europe is calling for:

• General guidelines and EU travel tips.
• National infection control plans for hotels and restaurants.
• Instructions from local authorities on where to open restaurants, bars, beaches and swimming pools.

– At the moment we have not seen any plans. We are very disappointed We do not know if we have to separate the tables in the hotel restaurant meters or two meters, or configure the plexiglass between the tables. We need to be told. This is difficult to achieve in a few days, says Victoria Puche.

The EU wants to open the borders for the crown: tourism will not be like before

Greece wants to open to tourists in July

For those looking forward to a Mediterranean vacation, it may be smart to be prepared to improvise while planning a little carefully. Here are some of the things you need to watch out for and check again before you leave:

• Rules of entry: Flying is not the same as allowing everyone to enter a country.
• Accommodation: Make sure there are hotels or apartments available wherever you go.
• Local contagion situation: Read about infection control measures and rules.
• Official advice from EU, local and national authorities.

– To those who want to go to Spain this summer, I recommend following the pages of UD and UD’s travel advisor, Marit Gjelsten.

Travel and coronavirus information – questions and answers – regjeringen.no

Again allowed overlooking the house.

On May 11, it is allowed again with views of houses and properties in Spain. Marit Gjelsten makes video calls with her colleague Mona Nielsen about the infection control rules that apply when watching.

Nielsen runs another real estate company in Torrevieja one hour further south.

– Now I read in the newspaper that they plan to open flights again. First in Spain, then in Europe and then in the rest of the world. There are no dates, but it’s positive, says Mona Nielsen.

The two businesswomen ruled for record years when covid-19 and the crown epidemic caused Spain to close on March 14.

Mona Nielsen has been operating for 20 years and has used a savings fund to keep her 11 employees at a 50 percent job during the crisis.

Now they can re-sell properties. Mona shows us a three year old house with Norwegian owners. She has a potential buyer in Russia who has not yet been able to travel to see the house.

– This house could at least have a view, and yes, you may have sold it, says Mona Nielsen.

Norwegian colony

Costa Blanca got its name when British Airways opened direct flights in 1957 and marketed the destination as the “Costa Blanca”.

After the first British came the first Scandinavians.

Just over 10 years later, the first Norwegians settled here and helped found the Alfaz del Pi colony.

Today there are around 23,000 Norwegians living on the Costa Blanca.

Heric Campos Arteseros has grown up in his parents’ camp near Benidorm and not far from the Norwegian colony and has blood tourism. He is currently the main bureaucrat and general director of tourism for the entire Valencia region.

The Director-General believes that the EU has not shown sufficient interest in the tourism crisis.

– We need the EU. We need direct action for the tourism sector, which includes a joint security protocol. We need economic measures aimed at the tourism sector. There are companies that provide more services and are very profitable, but now need help, says Heric Campos Arteseros.

Are Norwegians willing to pay more?

Spain has 80 million visits a year. Tourism is the third largest industry in the country and employs two million people. 1.5 million passengers a year come on direct flights from Norway.

– We used to be very competitive, but if companies can now only fly four per row versus six per row before covid-19, then we have to see if prices will be acceptable to Norwegians, says Heric Campos Arteseros.