Greece has announced the country will be welcoming tourists for summer 2021, as it plans to reopen to fully vaccinated international visitors as of mid-May. 

During an interview with CNN on Wednesday March 17, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis confirmed that Greece has “all the necessary protocols in place to ensure that they will get the full Greek experience without any real compromises. If we did it last year, we will certainly do it much better this year as we have additional tools at our disposal,” Mitsotakis said. 

Referring to the European Commission’s official proposal on establishing a “Digital Green Certificate” to facilitate travel in Europe, the Greek PM added that the safety of tourists is of top priority and only tourists who have proof they have been vaccinated, have antibodies, or test negative for COVID-19 will be admitted.

Last week Greece’s Tourism Minister Harry Theoharis said its official welcome date was May 14 and to help prepare the country for visitors, employees in the tourism industry would be prioritised for COVID-19 vaccines after the country’s vulnerable populations. 

“People who are vaccinated, have tested negative or recovered from the disease, and have antibodies are welcome to Greece and we will welcome them irrespective of any agreements,” Theoharis told Reuters.