Croatia and Turkey could be added to UK quarantine list as coronavirus surges

Croatia and Turkey may soon be added to the UK's quarantine list as coronavirus cases rise in both countries.

Greece recently joined the group of nations from which returning travellers will have to self-isolate for two weeks, and now two more popular holiday destinations could follow.

Turkey has recorded its highest daily number of cases since June, with 1,256 positive tests and 21 deaths in the past 24 hours.

Meanwhile Croatia recorded 162 new infections on Sunday, which passes the Government's travel quarantine threshold.

The news comes after France, the Netherlands, Monaco, Malta, Turks & Caicos and Aruba were all added to the UK's quarantine list last week.

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Previously all these countries had air bridges with Britain allowing travellers to move between them without needing to isolate for 14 days upon their return.

The addition of France in particular had Brits scrambling to get home after Transport Secretary Grant Shapps made the announcement on Thursday.

The quarantine requirement kicked in at 4am on Saturday morning, giving holidaymakers just over 24 hours to get home if they didn't want to spend two weeks in quarantine.

British Airways hiked its prices in the chaos and interest in both the Eurostar and P&O Ferries surged, even as travellers were urged not to rush to ports and terminals in case they were turned away.

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There are an estimated 20,000 British tourists currently in Croatia who could be forced to rush home at a moment's notice if the southeastern European country is added to the quarantine list.

Secretary Shapps has said any country recording above 20 cases of Covid-19 per 100,000 people in a week could "trigger" the introduction of quarantine measures.

Croatia's number of cases has risen to 29.3 per 100,000, prompting speculation it's about to require quarantine.

The country has seen a total of 6,571 Covid-19 cases and 166 deaths.

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Turkey, meanwhile, has recorded 248,117 cases and 5,974 deaths since the pandemic began.

It seemed to be coping well with Covid-19 for some time, with UK travel agencies flogging cheap tickets to Istanbul, Cappadocia and Antalya.

But Turkey's cases have surged recently and there are currently 18.5 infections per 100,000 people, an increase from the 15.8 recorded last month.

This means it too could have its air bridge with the UK removed.

The Turkish government has its own entry requirements for British travellers, with all new arrivals required to undergo a temperature check at the airport.

Anyone with coronavirus symptoms must have a swab test done.

Anyone whose test comes back positive will need to self-isolate at a location determined by the Ministry of Health or at a private hospital at their own expense.

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