Among hotels and restaurants in Turkey, which were temporarily closed in late March after the first coronavirus case in the country was reported, those providing necessary hygiene conditions will open their doors again on May 27.
Turkey has entered a new phase in its fight against the pandemic, as measures taken to curb the spread of the virus proved successful as both virus-related deaths and new cases have already started to drop. Accordingly, the government, which has been working to set hygiene standards specific to each sector for the transition to the "new normal," has also prepared special guidelines for the food and beverage industry, as well as the accommodation sector.
The hotels and restaurants that abide by that instruction, which is expected to be announced next week will be able to host costumers again. Nearly 100,000 restaurants were initially banned from table service on March 21 within the scope of measures announced by the Interior Ministry and were only allowed to provide take out services.
Virus-free hotel certificate
Meanwhile, hotels that earn "Healthy Tourism Certification," part of a program initiated by the Culture and Tourism Ministry to offer tourists a coronavirus-free environment in efforts to boost the industry, will be announced on the agency’s website.
The certification program will include several criteria, such as putting a minimum distance of 1.5 meters between tables and 60 centimeters between chairs at those enterprises’ restaurants.
Food safety requirements will be applied based on each process, including food acceptance, preparation, processing, service and presentation. Samples will be taken and examined daily, while staff will be provided with protective clothes and temperature checks will be carried out regularly.
Speaking of the normalization process, Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said they are, along with the Foreign Affairs Ministry, in contact with several countries, to inform them of Turkey’s hospital capacities, along with its number of ambulances and ventilators to assuage those planning to ease travel restrictions.