Covid-19 is the EU's worst crisis so far - and Greece is one of the countries predicted to be hit hardest by the pandemic. According to forecasts, the country's GDP will fall by almost ten percent this year.

At the same time, Greece's national debt is expected to rise to 196 percent of GDP - in addition, the country may have an unemployment rate of 19.9 percent.

The country, which has undergone a financial crisis in recent years, is dependent on tourism. According to the BBC, the tourism industry accounts for 25 per cent of the country's GDP and a fifth of all Greeks work in the sector.

During the high season in the summer, over 200,000 people work alone in the Greek hotels, according to the Hellenska Hotel Chamber.

Still want to save the summer

Last year, more than 31 million people traveled to Greece and tourism revenues increased by close to 13 per cent to the equivalent of around SEK 197 billion, according to the Greek central bank.

But now the summer, the most important months for tourism, looks to be beyond hope. At least until late summer.

At the same time, Greece began to ease restrictions already in late April. During the months of May and June, larger movements, restaurants and churches will be able to reopen. Late June may also be the case for some hotels, according to Stelios Petsas, spokesman for the Greek government.

The extent depends on how much transport is available.

According to the BBC, Greek researchers are developing new health rules for tourists. The country's tourism minister Haris Theocharis tells the BBC that it is among other things that social distancing will be a requirement and that hotel staff will be tested frequently to protect tourists.

Will be delayed by air travel

In addition, Greece is trying to find a way to make it possible to travel to the country by air, even though it is expected that people will mainly come by car or bus, for example.

- First we will see domestic tourism, then tourists from neighboring countries and finally tourists from countries farther away. In the beginning, it will be safer to travel on land than to fly, so we will see that kind of tourists sooner, ”Haris Theocharis told the BBC.

As of Tuesday, low-cost carrier Wizz announced its intention to start flying between the UK and tourist resorts in Spain and Greece respectively.