Austria warns against travel to Spain except the islands

Palma airport. | T. AYUGA

ReutersPalma06/08/2020 18:23

Austria's foreign ministry on Thursday warned against trips to Spain except for the Balearic and Canary Islands, as concerns grow that holidaymakers could catch coronavirus and spread it once they return.

The measure will take effect from Monday, and people returning to Austria will be required to present a negative test for Covid-19.

New cases of coronavirus in Spain reached 1,772 on Wednesday, the most since the lockdown ended.

Austria has weathered the coronavirus crisis quite well but has also seen infections increase with the summer holiday season.

There have been 21,689 cases in all and 719 fatalities. There were 148 new cases on Wednesday, the highest increase since July 30.

Austria already has tight testing requirements for travellers arriving from the Balkans. There are travel warnings for Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, as well as for two EU states - Bulgaria and Romania.