Slowly but surely, summer is getting closer and closer. The Greek islands are already enjoying pleasant summer temperatures. And if there were no pandemic, countless holidaymakers would already be relaxing in the sun. Greece is optimistic, however, and wants to reopen the borders to general tourism from May.

What you have to pay attention to as a holidaymaker and which regulations then prevail, you can find out here.

Holidays in Greece: borders to be reopened

Greece plans to start a new holiday season on May 14. This is intended to boost tourism, which has suffered enormously due to the absence of holidaymakers. For information: roughly one in five Greeks works in the tourism industry. Now it should finally be time again to open the borders for general tourism. Haris Theoharis, the country's tourism minister, assured that Greece is safe. Among other things, a number of scientifically conducted pilot projects are to ensure this.

Such as the so-called "Rhodes experiment". For this, about 200 Dutch tourists were selected to take a paid test holiday on the Greek island. For eight days, the holidaymakers spend their time at the exclusive Mitsis Grand Beach Hotel on Rhodes. During this time, they will have to undergo several Corona tests, fill in questionnaires and test the hotel's hygiene concept. The experiment is observed by renowned scientists, who pay attention to the extent to which the test subjects adhere to the measures and whether these are also helpful.

Five measures for tourists

In order to travel to Greece without hesitation, from 14 May onwards there are five measures that should enable tourists to stay safely. In addition, from this date, the mandatory seven-day quarantine will no longer apply - provided that one is either fully vaccinated against the coronavirus or has a negative PCR test.

• Those wishing to enter the country must either be fully vaccinated or have a negative PCR test.
• Random rapid tests could occur during border controls.
• Those who test positive must first go to a selected quarantine hotel.
• Mask requirement and distance test still apply.
• All employees in the tourism industry must be vaccinated to be able to start their work.

How Athens is awakening wanderlust with a digital campaign

We all suffer from wanderlust from time to time. The current situation only intensifies that. Greece's capital has just the thing to awaken our wanderlust and alleviate it a bit: Love Letter from Athens. With six video postcards, Athens sends its message "We look forward to seeing you again!" to the international visitors of the Greek capital. Love letters from Athens is the new digital campaign by This is Athens and Partners, launched by the Municipality of Athens and key tourism stakeholders in the midst of the pandemic.

loveathens.gr

"Love Letters from Athens" is inspired by personal letters full of longing that people have always sent to each other in difficult times. The short and intimate video messages express how much Athens misses its visitors and are each signed with "Love, Athens". The goal of the campaign is to inspire wanderlust in potential Athens travelers. The messages are full of anticipation and hope for the great reunion and are especially aimed at true lovers of the city by evoking nostalgic feelings and building a personal relationship between Athens and the visitor.

The campaign includes six short videos featuring some of Athens' most famous landmarks, such as the statue of Pallas Athena in front of the Academy building, the Odeon of Herodes Atticus, the Panathinaiko stadium and the Plaka district. Thus, it highlights the colorful city life, the rich culture, the incomparable art and architecture, and the unique history of Athens.

The videos are here. available.

Picture Credits: Holiday Tracker / Unsplash, Hello Lightbulb / Unsplash, Gaddafi Rusli / Unsplash, Gaetano Cessati / Unsplash