(CNN) – Greece has lifted quarantine requirements for vaccinated travelers and travelers who test negative for Covid-19 from major tourism markets, including Europe, the UK and the United States, in what officials called “baby steps” on the way back to normalcy.
But while qualified visitors can check into hotels to enjoy the Greek sun and beaches, they will be subject to the same restrictions as locals, meaning restaurants and bars will remain off-limits except for take-aways.
The move marks the first time the country has been open to US visitors since March 2020, when Greece first shut down at the start of the pandemic.
It also makes Greece one of the first major European destinations to reopen to tourists for the summer season – a development that could allow it to steal a significant portion of holiday traffic away from rival hot spots.
Under the new rules, arrivals from the EU, UK, United States, Israel, Serbia and UAE who have been vaccinated or passed a negative PCR test up to 72 hours prior to arrival can enter.
Officials said targeted rapid checks will be carried out at entry points and quarantine hotels are on hand to accommodate those who test positive during this process. Safety protocols, including mask wearing and social distance, remain in effect.
Greek Tourism Minister Harry Theoharis told CNN that the country is “taking these baby steps, the start of a gradual opening process that will lead to a full opening of tourism in Greece on May 14. We will be making adjustments over the next few weeks.”
‘Slow start’
The party island of Mykonos, pictured here in May 2020, raised less than a third of its usual tourism income last year.
ARIS MESSINIS / AFP via Getty Images
In addition to Athens and the city of Thessaloniki on the east coast, direct international flights are now permitted in some of Greece’s most popular holiday destinations: Crete, Rhodes, Kos, Mykonos, Santorini and Corfu.
The tourism sector accounts for more than 20% of the country’s GDP and an estimated 25% of the Greek workforce – more than a million jobs.
With its economy so dependent on the sector, and only gradually recovering from a nearly decade-long financial crisis, Athens is campaigning vigorously for the introduction of vaccine passports to encourage travel across the EU. It is also in talks with non-EU countries to try to establish travel corridors.
Israeli visitors who test negative or with vaccination certificates have been exempt from a week-long quarantine since early April, but officials say other continued restrictions plus a recent surge in Greek cases have discouraged all but a few.
Monday’s opening announcement was welcomed on the popular party island of Mykonos. Mayor Konstantinos Koukas has said revenues in the Covid hit 2020 season were only 30% from the previous year.
Iraklis Zissimopoulos, CEO of the Semeli Hospitality Group, which includes hotels, bars and restaurants on the island, described the lifting of the quarantine restrictions as a symbolic move.
“It sends the message that Greece is delivering on its promise to open fully in May and that is why it is welcome,” he said. “We know it will be a slow start.”
‘Protective shield’
Even as Greece’s vaccination program progresses at a modest pace – currently less than 10% of the population has received one dose – more restrictions are expected to be lifted in the weeks leading up to May 14.
Once the most vulnerable groups are vaccinated, starting next month, those working in tourism are expected to be next.
But dozens of Greece’s smaller islands, with fewer than 1,000 inhabitants, are now Covid-free, and the entire population has received both injections. The vaccination program is now expanding to larger islands.
It is hoped that securing the islands will enable Greece to offer specific Covid-free zones.
“If all the local population is vaccinated in Mykonos, an island with about 10,000 inhabitants, we will have a protective shield,” said Zissimopoulos, who is also a cardiologist.
What is certain is that the thirst for travel is there.
Earlier this month, an experiment devised by travel industry experts saw nearly 200 Dutch participants flew to the island of Rhodes, trading their secret annexes for a week of voluntary confinement at a beach resort.
They were not allowed to leave the resort during their stay and agreed to remain in quarantine for up to 10 days upon return.
According to Martine Langerak, spokesperson for the tour operator Sunweb, who organized the trip under the auspices of the Dutch government, the test ‘safe holidays’ drew registrations from more than 25,000 people in less than 24 hours.
Special moments
Roxane Seewoester: “We hope they can come and celebrate their special moment with their loved ones.”
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“We were surprised by the question. It shows how many people want to go on vacation,” Langerak told CNN.
Despite Greece’s decision to open its borders, some countries, such as the UK, still have restrictions that prevent international travel, and the recent increase in infections in Greece means that quarantine regulations may apply to holidaymakers when they go to go home.
Travel industry experts in Greece agree it will be a slow start, with bookings not starting to pick up until July. This means that hundreds of thousands of people working in tourism and related industries will have to wait to find out if and when they will have a job this summer.
Roxane Seewoester, a 25-year-old wedding planner at Golden Apple Weddings in Rhodes, a destination that normally receives more than two million tourists annually, says most tourist weddings were canceled last year.
This summer they will be gradually reduced again.
“We work a lot with people from the United States and Australia,” she says. “It’s a long way to travel. It takes people months to plan. We hope they can come and celebrate their special moment with their loved ones and that we can all move on with our lives.”