Greece wishes to welcome vaccinated tourists
Athens and the Parthenon.
In Greece, the tourism sector is one of the pillars of the country's economy.
Getty Images - Scott E Barbour
Text by: Joël Bronner Follow
4 min
In Greece, the tourism sector is one of the pillars of the country's economy.
So despite the context of a global pandemic - and containment still in progress to varying degrees across the country - Athens wishes to start its official tourist season in mid-May and thus welcome tourists who have been vaccinated or who test negative for the coronavirus.
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From our correspondent in Athens
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At present, tourism is vital for Greece.
The tourism sector in fact represents around a fifth, or even a quarter, of the country's economy and the income of one in five Greek employees depends on it.
An analyst interviewed by RFI also recalls that tourism was one of the few sectors that was doing well in Greece during the decade of financial crisis that hit the country, following the so-called debt crisis.
But that same tourism, which was therefore seen as a strength in recent years, finally turned into a weakness, in the context of the coronavirus, when the number of travelers fell sharply.
Last year, Greece in fact welcomed nearly ¾ fewer tourists compared to the 34 million visitors recorded in 2019. In other words, Athens hopes, as soon as possible, a return of these tourists and financial windfall that they represent.
Greece in favor of a European vaccine passport
Greece therefore plans to welcome travelers who have been vaccinated as a priority.
Due to its dependence on tourism, Greece was also the first country to defend the idea of a European vaccination passport, that is to say a vaccination certificate that would theoretically allow travelers to move around more easily. across the continent.
Two weeks ago, the European Commission announced the establishment of such a certificate from June.
This should indicate if a person has recently tested negative for the virus, if they have recovered from the disease and have antibodies, or if they have been vaccinated.
During a trip to Serbia in recent days,
Harry Theoharis the Greek Minister of Tourism
made it clear that in addition to people with a negative test, Greece would welcome anyone vaccinated.
A measure which therefore also concerns people who have received the Russian or Chinese vaccine, although these have not obtained official approval from the European Medicines Agency.
The resumption of tourism, a headache in the midst of a period of restrictions
It is clear that there is currently a paradox between the desire to open the country to tourists even though the Greeks have been undergoing national confinement to varying degrees since November.
If Greece has been relatively more spared than other European states, the situation of hospitals in the country of 11 million inhabitants is nevertheless the worst since the start of the pandemic, in particular in Attica, the region of Athens.
In total, in Greece, more than 8,000 deaths linked to Covid-19 have been officially recorded.
A situation which, until now, does not seem to slow down the authorities in their desire to encourage, as quickly as possible, the resumption of tourist flows.
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See also: Covid-19 in Greece: private clinics requisitioned to help public hospitals
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Greece
Tourism
Coronavirus