Update – 27/04/2021
April 27, 2021
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As of the latest update by the Greek authorities, the total number of confirmed Covid-19 diagnosed cases in Greece is 334,436. 80 new deaths were reported raising the total number to 10,087. The number of patients treated in intensive care units is currently 811. 1,317 new cases were announced yesterday in Greece. 609 of the new cases were found in the Attica region and 161 new cases in the Thessaloniki region.
Greece’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) announced on Sunday that the quarantine requirement is now lifted for travelers from seven additional countries, provided they provide proof of vaccination, immunity, or negative test results for Covid-19 confirmed within 72 hours before travel.
The new countries to make it on Greece’s no-quarantine list are Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, Rwanda, Singapore and Thailand.
The seven-day quarantine requirement was lifted one week earlier for travelers who are permanent residents of the European Union, Schengen Treaty countries, the United Kingdom, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, Serbia and Israel, under the same conditions.
PCR tests are also required of children over 5 years of age who are arriving with their families.
However, restrictions on domestic flights are extended to May 10, as still only necessary travel is allowed between Greek airports.
More airports open to Russian travelers
Russian travelers, however, will require both a negative PCR test and a certificate of inoculation upon arrival to Greece in order to skip the 7-day quarantine period. Their vaccination must have been completed at least 14 days prior to their travel, the CAA notes.
A weekly limit of 4,000 arrivals of Russian citizens has been set. Nonetheless, Russian citizens will be able to enter Greece through nine different airports, instead of just three until now (Athens, Thessaloniki and Herakleion), as long as they also present the above-mentioned documents.
The new airports to include direct flights to and from Russia are Corfu, Rhodes, Kos, Mykonos, Santorini and Chania.
The developments come days after Greek Minister of Tourism Harry Theocharis’ official visit to Moscow.
It is estimated that Greece will welcome hundreds of thousands of tourists to arrive from Russia this summer, as the result of joint efforts to resume tourism activity between the two countries.
Lift of quarantine prepares Greece for tourism season
The gradual opening of the tourism sector, which started in mid-April for a limited number of foreign travelers, is expected to help authorities in identifying policy gaps and omissions ahead of the official launch of the 2021 tourism season on May 14.
Once the travel ban is lifted, any travelers entering the country will be required to complete their PLF document, downloadable from the Visit Greece app and at travel.gov.gr, until the day before entering Greece and leaving their country of origination.
The form will provide detailed information on their point of departure, the duration of previous stays in other countries, and the address of their stay in Greece. In case of multiple stays, travelers are required to provide their address for at least the first 24 hours of their stay.
In this context, it is strongly recommended that all visitors download the Visit Greece app — which is GDPR compliant — for free, prior to their arrival in Greece.
Greece will open its Covid-19 vaccination platform for those aged 30-49 this week, allowing Greeks of that age group to make appointments for the shot on the government’s website.
Starting on Holy Tuesday, Greeks aged 30-39 will be able to schedule an appointment to get the vaccine.
Marios Themistokleous, Greek Secretary General for Primary Health Care, announced that there will be many appointments available for the age group, and they may be vaccinated earlier than they think:
“There are enough appointments — someone who will go in to schedule one tomorrow could be vaccinated the next day.”
The platform will subsequently open for those who are 40-44 years of age on Holy Thursday. Both of these groups will only be able to receive the AstraZeneca shot.
On Holy Saturday, one day before Easter, Greeks in the age group 45-49 will be eligible to receive any available vaccine — regardless of maker.
Currently, any Greek citizen over the age of 50 can get the shot, as the platform opened for those aged 50-54 last Saturday, and those who are 55-59 last Wednesday.
Restaurants will reopen as of May 3 and will be allowed to remain open until 11 p.m., with the onus on customers as regards whether or not they opt to violate the evening curfew, according to the rules that were announced last week.
Businesses operating exclusively as bars, as well as catering companies, will have to remain closed.
More specifically, according to the rules, customers will only be allowed to sit outdoors and, in a departure from last year when restaurants reopened, the operation of semi-outdoor spaces will not be allowed.
Standing customers will not be allowed while only up to six people can sit at each table. Tables will have to be at least a certain distance from each other.
As for restaurants’ bars, only seated customers will be allowed.
Up to two stools may be placed side by side. The next pair of stools should be 1.5 meters away.
The staff will also will have to conduct self-tests twice a week.
The cost of one self-test will be covered by the state, while the expense for the other will be covered by the employer.
Disinfectants must be placed on every table while employees will be required to wear a mask. Customers must also wear a mask while waiting and there is a strong mask recommendation for seated customers to do so as well.
What’s more, the menus must be disinfected between each set of customers.
In more detail, the 1,317 new cases detected per Regional Unit:
