Theoharis announces Greek ‘Restart Tourism’ with 15 June opening

Year-round hotels will open on 1 June along with camping sites and summer season hotels will follow suit on 15 June, Tourism Minister Harry Theoharis told a news conference today on the government’s third phase of coronavirus-related measures.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Finance Minister Christos Staikouras and Labor Minister Yannis Vroutsis, Theocharis said that restrictions on private yacht travel, rental or otherwise, will be lifted on May 25.

The tourism minister spoke straight after a nationally televised address by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in which he announced a 24bn euro pandemic recovery fund and the government’s plans to re-open the country to international flights.

Part of the “Restart Tourism plan”, includes lifting restrictions on incoming flights.

As of June 15 Athens’ Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport will open up flights from countries with good epidemiological criteria.

. Beginning on 1 July flights from abroad will be allowed to land at any international airport in Greece.

Currently, the limited flights from abroad can only land at the Venizelos airport, where all visitors are tested for Covid-19.

Theocharis said that tourists this year were expected to come from Germany, and Balkan and Baltic countries. He said that tourists arriving in Greece would not be obliged to submit to a coronavirus test on arrival, but random testing would take place.