Greece eager to welcome more visitors

Politicians in discussions over vaccine certificates in attempt to boost tourism

British holidaymakers vaccinated against COVID-19 could be able to travel to Greece as early as May, after politicians in one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe discussed proposals to break from the European Union's more cautious line about international travel.

According to the road map out of pandemic lockdown published by the British government on Monday, if the initial steps prove successful, the earliest possible date international travel could be permitted would be May 17.

Even just the prospect of this has already caused a huge surge in holiday inquiries and bookings from British travelers, and having seen this, Greece, where the tourism industry accounts for around one fifth of GDP and employment, is eager to cash in.

It has already established so-called vaccination bubbles with Israel and Cyprus, meaning people who have been vaccinated can visit without the need for quarantine, and now it is looking to add the United Kingdom to the list, which would be a major challenge to the majority, more wary EU approach.

Greece's tourism minister Harry Theocharis told the Financial Times that Northern European nations in particular needed to think more about the potential for economic recovery this summer.

"Looking at the reaction of some countries to vaccination certificate proposals, I feel there's a lot of short sightedness. There's more to be done now to prepare ourselves," he said.

"Some countries are very much preoccupied with now ... We need to move more quickly."

Greece's prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is also keen for those who can prove they have been vaccinated to be able to visit the country.

"A vaccine certificate would allow you to enter Greece without being forced to provide a negative test and without any quarantine restrictions and we do intend to go down that path," he said.

"For those who have not been vaccinated the most likely scenario is that we will request some sort of negative test, we want to make it as easy as possible for them to travel to Greece."

The authorities in Spain's Balearic Islands, another destination hugely popular with British tourists, have also expressed interest in being a trial area for proposed vaccine passports, which have previously been suggested by Greece and will be discussed by EU officials on Thursday.

"We are gradually reopening the economy, and we hope to kick start the tourism season in May," the Islands' minister for tourism, Iago Negueruela, told the Daily Telegraph.

"The Balearic Islands has proposed to Spain's central government that the archipelago becomes one of the first places where the vaccine passport is trialled.

"We are working hard behind the scenes to ensure a safe return to tourism so that we are ready for when British visitors are able to travel once more."