Spain-Munich-Finland, overnight layover: Do I need a Corona test?
 

Hello everyone!

In a few weeks' time I need to travel from Finland to Spain. On the way there I am connecting in FRA, on the way back in MUC. I understand that transit passengers in Germany do not need a Covid-19 test, but on the way back I am arriving at MUC at 20:00 and departing for HEL at 8:00. I was planning on making a booking at an airport hotel. The flight is all on one ticket.

Now I have learned that Bavaria requires a negative Covid-19 test for anyone coming from a Covid-19 risk area, including Spain. The Bavarian health ministry's regulations exception for transit passengers: "Passagiere, die aufgrund vorliegender Unterlagen (zum Beispiel Fahrkarten) glaubhaft machen können, dass sie das Gebiet der Bundesrepublik Deutschland unmittelbar nach der Einreise auf direktem Weg wieder verlassen" (Passengers, who on the basis of documentation (for example transport tickets) can convincingly demonstrate that they will leave Germany directly after arrival via a direct route).

Might they allow me to sleep in an airport hotel? Or should I sleep in the terminal? Or try to get a Covid test in Spain?

Thanks for your insights!

In my eyes you should try to get a test in Spain, not older than 48 hours. But new rules are coming and most likely they will be stricter.

The "most direct route" is subjective and one might say that a 12 hours overnight is the most direct route, one might say not. If you want to be 100% in the clear, then you should get a test in Spain.

Update:

I found a document about the quarantine rules at the website of the Bavarian health ministry (http://www.stmgp.bayern.de/wp-conten..._eqv_en_bf.pdf), wherein is stated:

"Do I have to go into quarantine if I am only travelling through Bavaria? If you are just travelling through Bavaria, you do not have to go into quarantine, but you do have to leave the Free State of Bavaria on an immediate route. A short rest for safety reasons is permitted."

This suggests to me that it may be possible to stay in an airport hotel. I followed up with a telephone call to the German Federal Police at Munich Airport, explaining my situation to them. The person I spoke to said that if I was continuing to Finland, the Finnish authorities would decide on quarantine measures. When asked specifically if I could stay overnight in an airport hotel in Munich, I was told that if I want to be safe, it would be best to get a Corona test in Spain prior to flying to Germany. I asked if it would be possible to get the test at Munich airport instead, and was told yes, but the results would not be ready immediately.

So it is still not entirely clear to me whether they would prevent me from exiting the airport and taking a cab to an airport hotel. I will look into Corona test possibilities in Spain.

They will not prevent you from exiting the airport. I just came from AMS, they will make you take a test if you don’t have one (I did), we were sorted into “with test” and “without test” lines . Very few people had tests - but I was waiting and saw people from the “test” lanes all coming out.

Take a test in Spain and have the result handy to show on arrival. Then you are free to roam the country :)

I have a flight scheduled next month with an overnight layover in Frankfurt. I would be arriving from Spain. At this point, I probably won't continue with it, but was hoping someone with more knowledge of how things are in Germany could help clarify.

I see on the Frankfurt Airport website that from November 8 things are getting stricter:

Am I correct to assume from this that even if I was to take a test in Spain less than 48 hours before and test negative, I'd still need to quarantine? It also sounds like you must stay in isolation for 10 days, which would most certainly rule out an overnight airport hotel stay?

This is correct. Also bear in mind tourism is forbidden in Germany for November. Hotels will be either close or you might be asked to provide a proof of being on business trip or essential trip at check-in.

Thanks for the reply. Appreciated :)

The flights are on the 4th December, so I think (if the lockdown does actually end as scheduled) it'd fall after, but because LH has done a lot of rescheduling my layover is about 20 hours. I'm not sure I am inclined to stay airside for that long, and the transit hotel looked pretty expensive for these dates.

On the plus, at least Germany (certainly as someone who doesn't know much about the domestic situation) seems to communicate these things with a fair bit of notice. It at least makes things easier to plan/cancel.