COVID-19 Restarting Travel & Tourism in Greece Greece will Reportedly Open for Tourism Earlier than Expected by GTP editing team 15 April 2021 written by GTP editing team 15 April 2021 16 comments Share 0FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail 71 UPDATE – Friday, April 16, 9pm: Alex Patelis, the chief economic adviser to the Greek Prime Minister, has confirmed via twitter that Greece will lift the seven-day compulsory quarantine for visitors from the European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, Serbia, Israel and the United Arab Emirates as of Monday April 19. “Visitors will still need to provide proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test from within 72 hours before arrival,” he tweeted. No further details are available at this time. An official announcement is expected to be made soon. Greece is said to be taking its first step next week in re-opening for tourism, almost one month ahead of schedule. According to reports, as of Monday, April 19, travelers from all EU member states, the United States, the United Kingdom, Serbia, Israel and the United Arab Emirates will be able to enter Greece without having to undergo mandatory quarantine after arrival only if they have proof of vaccination or present a negative PCR test performed less than three days prior to their trip. It is reminded that Greece has already lifted the quarantine measure for passengers from Israel. Citing a government official, Reuters news agency said that the only airports open to travelers from those countries will be those located in Athens and Thessaloniki, as well as on the islands of Crete (Heraklion and Chania), Rhodes, Kos, Mykonos, Santorini and Corfu. Under current rules, which expire on April 19, all international passengers arriving in Greece must have a negative PCR test with them and must undergo a mandatory quarantine for seven days. Serbian Ambassador confirms opening for Serbs Speaking to the Tanjug news agency on Thursday, Serbian Ambassador to Athens Dušan Spasojević confirmed that Serbian nationals will be able to travel to Greece from April 19 by air or by road from the northern land border crossings of Promahonas and Nymfeas. Spasojević clarified that travelers should must have either a vaccination certificate issued by an official Serbian authority or a negative PCR test less than three days old. He added that all Serbian travelers must also submit the Passenger Locator Form (PLF) 24 hours before their trip to Greece. Lockdown restrictions are still in place in Greece, so visitors will be obliged to follow all rules as Greek citizens do. Restaurants and cafes still remain closed, travel between prefectures is banned and a night curfew is still in place. Archaeological sites in Greece have re-opened. Editor’s note: No further details on the lifting of quarantine restrictions for the aforementioned countries are available at this time. Official announcements are expected to be made in the coming days. Join the 15,000+ travel executives who read our newsletter Follow GTP Headlines on Google News to keep up to date with all the latest on tourism and travel in Greece. Share 0 FacebookTwitterLinkedinWhatsappEmail GTP editing team This is the team byline for GTP. The copyrights for these articles are owned by GTP. They may not be redistributed without the permission of the owner. previous post Greece is Ready to Welcome Tourists from Russia, Says Minister next post Hotel of the Year Awards: Τα ξεχωριστά ξενοδοχεία μιας ιδιαίτερης χρονιάς You may also like Greece’s Hotel Market Sees Major Investments Over Four Months 5 February 2025 Greek Tourism Ministry Monitors Santorini Situation as Seismic Activity Continues 5 February 2025 Global Air Passenger Demand Reaches Record High in 2024, IATA Reports 5 February 2025 Greek PM Reassures Public About Santorini’s Ongoing Seismic Activity 5 February 2025 Milos: Ministry Suspends 5-star Hotel Construction Near Sarakiniko Beach 5 February 2025 ELIME and HELMEPA Join Forces for Safer, More Sustainable Greek Ports 5 February 2025 16 comments George Klimes 19 April 2021 - 03:07 That’s a good start, but without restaurants, museums, and shops being fully open, many travelers will hold off. I am hoping that Greece gets everyone vaccinated by June or so. I would like to get back later in the summer. Tickets for last year were cancelled and can be used once I am sure of a date that actually works. Reply Mark Brealey 16 April 2021 - 20:03 What is considered proof of both vaccines being completed? I will have had both by the time I travel on 21st June but at the moment only have appointment/vaccination card Reply Karen M Holthof 16 April 2021 - 16:05 This sounds like a pipe dream. Every state in the US is spiking with COVID though many are getting vaccinated. With shops and restaurants still locked down in Greece, it rather defeats the purpose of visitors coming for shopping and eating. I’m glad to hear the archeological sites are open but people come for the whole package. I wish you well and hope to see Greece recover fully in the near future. Reply Gina Elizabeth DeShera 16 April 2021 - 18:48 Cases are NOT spiking in California and many other states. We have 41% vaccinated and growing. I applaud Greece for stepping forward and opening safely to the vaccinated and COVID tested people. I sure hope others will follow. This is a step in the right direction with all the proper precautions. Reply NektoPoli 16 April 2021 - 22:30 True, but Greece has taken steps to vaccinate entire island population ahead of open to tourist, I do feel April 19th (NEXT MONDAY) is to soon, but with the rate of vaccination in the USA everyone who wants the vaccine(80%) done by July 4th(I know how patriotic). Greece feels that allowing vaccinated tourist is not and issue maybe they know something the general population doesn’t Reply Tim 17 April 2021 - 02:48 Not true! The USA has seen a huge drop! Reply David 16 April 2021 - 15:58 Cafes and Restaurants closed. Not good for tourists Reply Manos Papanikolaou 16 April 2021 - 19:53 Clean beaches with nice sea water sunshine and picturesque villages as well as the tradiotional Greek hospitality are still there. Reply L 16 April 2021 - 21:20 When willschool open ???? Reply Gina Elizabeth DeShera 16 April 2021 - 14:47 This is great news for ME (A vaccinated US citizen). It is still not official though. I sure hope it’s true. Can’t wait to go to Greece and swim in warm water! Reply Robert Wills 16 April 2021 - 12:17 I was informed by the Minister, that people who had passed through the covid 19 , would also be accepted as the had the antibodies ??????? Reply Stephen Foulkes 16 April 2021 - 11:33 this is promising news however many uk companies are cancelling flight up to June Reply Verhulst 16 April 2021 - 11:24 Hope the wil be open the airport of Zakynthos as well Soon Reply R.Ferguson 16 April 2021 - 03:26 Lateral Flow tests would be good instead of the swab type tests which cost £120 or even more and take longer to get a result. 72 hours is not really long enough and puts people under a lot of stress. Reply Tussar 16 April 2021 - 19:58 Hope open for indian citizens tourist visa Reply Michail ILIOVITS 15 April 2021 - 16:53 Healthy Greetings, When travelers from Beirut – Lebanon will be able to enter Greece without having to undergo mandatory quarantine after arrival (if they have proof of vaccination OR present a negative PCR test performed less than three days prior to their trip. Stay Safe, Michail ILIOVITS Reply Leave a Reply to R.Ferguson Cancel Reply Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ
