Hello all - i am an American living in the US trying to go to Sicily in September. There are flights on Turkish Airlines through Istanbul but I can’t get a clear answer on whether or not we would have to quarantine on arrival in Sicily. We would not leave the airport in Instanbul.
I have been searching for days trying to get a straight answer and would love any help/guidance!
Under the current rules, a transfer in Istanbul means you have to quarantine for 10 days upon arrival. What the rules will be in September is a good question.
Use this tool
https://infocovid.viaggiaresicuri.it/index_en.html
We flew to Italy, then on to Palermo. Why go all the way to Istanbul? There are frequent flights on Alitalia from Rome to both Palermo and Catania and prices were reasonable when we flew.
"Why go all the way to Istanbul?"
Because the OP probably found a deal on tickets via Turkish Airlines.....
"We would not leave the airport in Istanbul."
Totally irrelevant. You arrived in Turkey, that is all that matters.
Op- who knows (no one before mid-August at the earliest) what September will bring but your playing with fire if leaving the US on anything but a direct, non-stop flight to your destination country (Italy).
Dear Victoria, I actually did get into Italy via Istanbul. But I think I may have lucked out and just got a nice guy at the border. I showed him my CDC vaccination card, a negative PCR test within 48 hours, a completed EU passenger locator form, my transfer ticket through IST, and my return ticket. I was also visiting a friend who is a resident of Italy and another who is an Italian citizen, which somehow made a difference under these new rules. The questioning at the border was thorough and intense. Even though it worked out ok for me, as the Delta variant spreads and the rules get tougher, like with green pass, it sounds like the risks may not outweigh the benefit of taking a chance on Turkish Airlines’ cheap fares thru Istanbul… unless you are planning on self isolating in some gorgeous Sicilian villa for 10-14 days (not a bad plan!). Also, on my flight back to Istanbul on Turkish airlines, we missed our landing at the last minute and had to ascend again and circle around. It was harrowing and I’ve never been so scared on a plane in my entire life. No explanation was provided to passengers. So, those direct flights may be the best way to go at this particular time.
