Greece Prepares for Full Opening to Tourists Mid-Pandemic

Before COVID-19, the Greek island of Santorini, pictured above, welcomed 2 million tourists annually (Flickr).

Earlier this week, Greece announced that it would add the U.S. to its list of places (which includes the U.K., the EU, and Israel) from which tourists would have to quarantine when Greece reopens on May 15. While the scheduled reopening will bolster Greece’s devastated tourism industry, Greece continues to count record-high numbers of COVID-19 cases. 

Accounting for 18 percent of its GDP and one-fifth of jobs, tourism represents a central component of Greece’s economy, particularly during the busy summer period. Global arrival tallies in summer 2020, however, fell below 80 percent of those from the same time a year earlier, delivering a crushing blow to an economy still reeling from the 2011 debt crisis and subsequent recession. As such, the Greek government considers a successful summer 2021 season absolutely vital to get the country back on track. 

A recent spike in COVID-19 cases coupled with a low vaccination rate has complicated Greece’s aspirations. “We all want to go someplace. The economy needs it. But it would be fooling the general population to think it doesn’t carry a risk,” remarked Flemming Konradsen, Director of the School of Global Health at the University of Copenhagen. In response to these health concerns, Greece has restricted travel to those vaccinated or quarantined and promises to speed up inoculations when courses arrive from Johnson & Johnson and Pfizer at the end of April.

The stark reality of the pandemic, however, remains. The measures of Greece’s aggressive six-month lockdown, which include curfews, distancing requirements, and sanitation measures, will remain in force even upon the arrival of tourists. It is possible that travelers may opt for COVID-19-free destinations or stick to domestic travel. This risk, however, has weighed on Greece: the longer borders stay closed, the more likely travelers will find a new favorite destination, thus creating a generational problem for the industry. 

The success of Greece’s experiment would carry widespread implications for other countries such as Italy and Spain, whose economies also rely on summer tourism. Although neither has plans to reopen anytime soon, any Greek success could offer countries a solution to balancing economic stability and safety protocols.