Covid-19: Greece lifts quarantine rule for travellers from UAE, UK and US

The country will open up to travellers who have been vaccinated or test negative for the coronavirus

Greece is opening up in mid-May for travellers from the European Union and five other countries, including the UAE, UK and US. Unsplash

Greece has lifted quarantine restrictions for travellers from the European Union and five other countries, including the UAE, who have been vaccinated or test negative for Covid-19, the civil aviation authority said in a statement.

In March, the country lifted a one-week quarantine rule for Israeli travellers who have been inoculated and test negative.

Greece, which emerged from a decade-long financial crisis before the pandemic last year, has said it will open its tourism sector, a key growth driver for its economy, from the middle of May.

The quarantine will be lifted from Monday but other restrictions "for domestic or international flights will be in effect until April 26", the aviation authority said.

The official said citizens from the EU, the US, Britain, Serbia, Israel and the UAE will be allowed to travel to Greece via the airports of Athens, Thessaloniki, Heraklion, Chania, Rhodes, Kos, Mykonos, Santorini and Corfu, and two border crossings.

Passengers from those countries will not be quarantined, as long as they prove that they have received two doses of a Covid-19 vaccine or show a negative PCR test carried out 72 hours prior to their arrival, the official said, adding the tourists would be subject to domestic lockdown restrictions.

Under current rules, all foreigners arriving in Greece should test negative and quarantine for seven days. For passengers from Britain and the UAE, a second mandatory test is also required upon their arrival.

Greece has fared better than other EU countries in containing the first wave of the pandemic, but a resurgence in infections has forced the country to impose lockdown restrictions since November.

Greece has reported a total of 301,103 cases and 9,054 deaths so far.

This comes two weeks after Cyprus added 16 countries to its "coronavirus safe list" on April 1, including UAE, UK and US, in an attempt to kickstart its beleaguered tourism industry.