THE CROATIAN Institute of Public Health Director Krunoslav Capak spoke to Index and confirmed that the Institute is going to give the instructions for foreigners if the symptoms of coronavirus appear during their stay in Croatia.

"The accommodation providers should initiate the testing for coronavirus"

According to his words, in that case, every accommodation provider should be engaged - the hotel workers and the owners of private accommodation, apartments, and vacation houses. 

"We're working on the instructions and recommendations for the necessary procedure in case a tourist shows symptoms of coronavirus. One of the instructions is that they should stay in their rented accommodations, whether it's an apartment or a hotel, and the renters should initiate their COVID-19 testing," said Capak for Index. 

Many can travel to Croatia without any restrictions

Croatia has opened its borders for the citizens of 10 EU countries (Slovenia, Hungary, Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Germany) without any restrictions while the citizens of other EU countries and the third countries have to state a justified reason upon their arrival (business or family reasons, owning real estate or movable property in Croatia)

There are also no restrictions for Croatian citizens who live abroad and travel to Croatia.

We've talked with the Minister of Health Vili Beros, who said that those who travel to Croatia always pose a danger of spreading coronavirus to Croatia, whether they're foreigners or Croatian citizens.

The recent coronavirus cases came from abroad

We could see that from the latest information revealed by Alemka Markotic, Director of the University Hospital for Infectious Diseases "Fran Mihaljevic." Yesterday she stated that the last person infected with coronavirus in Croatia was a person who traveled from the USA, while the people infected a few days earlier came from Germany and Sweden. 

"That's why we have clear guidelines and protocols. If a person exhibits the coronavirus symptoms, they should contact the competent epidemiologist," said Beros.

He pointed out that the so-called COVID-passports had been mentioned, but the World Health Organization, according to Beros, had given a negative opinion. 

Beros: We don't have capacities for testing everyone who enters the country

"We didn't make conditions for foreigners to test upon their arrival to Croatia, and testing everyone is beyond our capacity. We'll test them in case of a justified suspicion based on the onset of symptoms. As far as I know, some private laboratories conduct serological testing, but they're unreliable. PCR tests, which are reliable, are done by the official laboratories based on a hospital or primary healthcare referral," said Beros for Index.

In Croatia, the reliable PCR testing can be made in the Teaching Institute for Public Health "Andrija Stampar," with payment. 

Testing for coronavirus in Andrija Stampar Institute costs €206. When to test for coronavirus?

The PCR testing in Andrija Stampar Institute costs €206 without scheduling an appointment. Drive-thru testing is available on workdays from 8 AM to 4 PM and on weekends from 8 AM to 12 AM. Wearing a mask is mandatory, and while you're sitting in your car, their epidemiologists take a nasal swab and your data, and the results are received within 24 hours. 

Since the incubation period lasts from two to 14 days, if a person doesn't show any symptoms, the testing upon arrival to Croatia is pointless, according to the Stampar Institute epidemiologists.

"If a person suspects that they could have been infected during travel, and let's say they are infected, they won't necessarily show any symptoms, so it's best to do the testing two weeks after travel," explained the Andrija Stampar Institute epidemiologists.