Wildfires in Southern Europe: What Rights Do Travelers Have in Case of an Evacuation?

As the Spanish Interior Ministry announced, the coming days are particularly critical for the firefighting efforts. Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said that Monday and Tuesday are "absolutely decisive" days for the emergency services. In France as well, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez spoke at midday of a situation that was "stabilized, but not under control." With regard to the weather situation, he added: "I do not want to reassure anyone." From Wednesday onward, the weather forecasts for firefighting would be "extremely unfavorable"; in parts of Spain and France, temperatures of up to 40 degrees are expected again.

What Do Consumer Advocates Recommend?

EVZ Germany spokesperson Karolina Wojtal explains what consequences this has for travelers. "The distance between the specific vacation destination and the fire plays a role, among other things," she explains. Package tourists may under certain circumstances demand a reduction in the travel price if essential travel services are impaired by smoke, evacuations, or closures. "Only if that does not happen does a reduction claim come into consideration," Wojtal continues. Those who want to undertake a trip should check current travel warnings from the Federal Foreign Office and information from local authorities before booking.

The prefect of Bordeaux, Sophie Brocas, issued an urgent appeal to tourists. She recommended "den Touristen, die kurz vor den Augustferien stehen, nicht zu kommen, zumindest nicht in die Gironde zu reisen, solange das Feuer nicht unter Kontrolle ist." She also asked vacationers already on site to "ein anderes Reiseziel in Betracht zu ziehen, da wir nicht vor einer Verschlimmerung der Lage gefeit sind, die uns zwingen würde, die Evakuierungen noch weiter zu beschleunigen." Government spokeswoman Maud Bregeon affirmed: "Wir bitten die Französinnen und Franzosen eindringlich, sich nicht in die Gironde zu begeben, solange das Feuer noch nicht unter Kontrolle ist."

Economic Consequences for the Tourism Region

Patrick Seguin, president of the Gironde Chamber of Industry and Commerce, describes the economic consequences of the fires for the vacation region. He told the broadcaster BFMTV: "Das ist ein schwerer Schlag für einen Großteil des vorwiegend vom Tourismus geprägten Departements - der Tourismus ist komplett zum Erliegen gekommen, die Saison ist vorbei." More than 40,000 jobs in the department depend on tourism, which generates annual revenues of 3.2 billion euros. The local association chairman Franck Chaumès hopes that the appeal will be "korrigiert," um "zu versuchen, den Monat August zu retten," as the news agency AFP reported.

The fires are, according to experts, a consequence of the ongoing drought and several heat waves with temperatures partly above 40 degrees, which have extremely dried out the vegetation. In the Gironde department, following a devastating major fire near Bordeaux in the year 2,500 firefighters, 18 firefighting aircraft, and 1,500 soldiers are deployed, the authorities reported. A fire officer told the broadcaster France Info that the major fire could last "several weeks, possibly even several months" before being fully extinguished. Prime Minister Sánchez warned during his visit to the disaster area of "zahlreichen Falschinformationen" circulating about the causes of the fires.

International Assistance and EU Deployment

The Bundeswehr is also participating in fighting the fires. As the Federal Ministry of Defense in Berlin announced, it dispatched two transport helicopters and an A400M transport aircraft with materials to the region to support the emergency services. The A400M can drop around 20 tons of extinguishing agent and thus more than three times as much as a Canadair. This means 13 of the 22 firefighting aircraft the EU has on standby for this summer have now been mobilized for the two countries.

Bundesregierung erklärte Regierungssprecher Stefan Kornelius. He expressed concern about the situation in southwestern Europe. The EU has, according to information from Brussels, for the summer 2,500 firefighters from 14 countries pre-stationed in particularly vulnerable regions of France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, and Cyprus. In addition, since 2,500 firefighters, 18 firefighting aircraft, and 1,500 soldiers are deployed, the Union has the strategic reserve rescEU with firefighting aircraft, medical equipment, field hospitals, and special technology for chemical or nuclear emergencies. In parallel, the EU is building up a permanently available rescEU fleet financed entirely from EU funds at a cost of around 600 million euros.

Greift das EU-Katastrophenschutzverfahren CPM, meldet ein Staat seinen Bedarf an das rund um die Uhr besetzte Koordinierungszentrum der Europäischen Union in Brüssel. There, specialists assess which of the 37 participating states can provide assistance — in addition to the 27 EU states, Norway, Turkey, and several Western Balkan states also participate. The "Europas Waldbrandfeuerwehr" can buy time in emergencies and relieve national disaster relief agencies, according to Brussels. Eigene "EU-Löschflotte" kommt: The current European aerial reserve for wildfire fighting consists mainly of nationally operated aircraft that are committed as EU capacities for a specific period. Because of empty state coffers, however, the funds for the purchase of 16 new Canadair firefighting aircraft were cut in 2024; now there will be four aircraft by 2033, two of them financed through EU funds.

Specific Rights for Package and Individual Travel

What specific rights do travelers have? Consumer advocates distinguish between package tours and individual bookings. For package tours, travelers can demand a free cancellation or a price reduction under European package travel law if extraordinary circumstances occur at the vacation destination that significantly impair the execution of the trip. These include officially ordered evacuations, closures of beaches and paths, as well as massive smoke exposure. Those who want to undertake a trip should check current travel warnings from the Federal Foreign Office and information from local authorities before booking.

For individually booked flights or vacation apartments, a refund depends on the conditions of the respective provider. Many airlines offer free rebookings in the event of travel warnings; a blanket obligation to refund generally exists only if the flight itself is canceled or massively delayed. EVZ spokeswoman Wojtal advises those affected to contact the tour operator or airline immediately and to keep evacuation orders and travel warnings from the Federal Foreign Office as evidence.

Information for Travelers and Acute Evacuations

What special rules apply to acute evacuations? If vacationers are asked by the authorities on site to leave their accommodation, the hotel or lodging side generally assumes responsibility for alternative accommodation or organizes transportation. If an entire region is closed to tourism — for example, because beaches are closed or hiking trails are inaccessible — travelers can, according to EVZ, demand a reduction in the travel price. The prerequisite, however, is that the impairment is "significant" — mere smoke odors or individual closures are generally not sufficient for this.

At the same time, the situation is worsening in other parts of Europe. In Italy, more than 400 people had to be brought to safety across the sea on Sunday because a wildfire hit the southern region of Apulia. Around 200 bathers were rescued via the sea route by boats from the coast guard and excursion ships. Diese Hitzewelle wird auch über Italien hereinbrechen, wo bereits am Sonntag mehr als 400 Menschen über das Meer in Sicherheit gebracht werden mussten, weil ein Waldbrand die südliche Region Apulien heimsucht. In France, the area burned this year is already six times larger than at the same time 2,500 firefighters, 18 firefighting aircraft, and 1,500 soldiers are deployed.

What should travelers currently keep in mind? Consumer advocates recommend checking the travel and security advisories from the Federal Foreign Office before and during a trip and taking the information from local authorities at the vacation destination seriously. Package travelers should also use their tour operator's travel app and know the emergency number 112 if needed. Travelers whose trip would lead to one of the affected regions should contact their tour operator and ask about free rebooking or cancellation options.

Long-Term Consequences and Weather Development

What are the long-term consequences of the current fire events? Rick McRae from the University of New South Wales told the "Guardian": "Es ist das erste Mal, dass Frankreich sich explizit mit dem Konzept einer Pyrocumulonimbus-Wolke auseinandersetzen muss." Such clouds form over