Here we go – we have the official list of countries from which Greece will accept travelers starting June 15. Of note – the US and the UK is not on this list so travelers from those countries will need to wait until at least July 1.
Greece Welcomes Travelers from 29 Countries Starting June 15
We had previously published a list of 20 countries that Greece had mentioned but today, the official list came out from Greece and it lists the following 29 countries that will have access to Greece starting June 15 (which is also the day that the external EU borders will reopen).
Countries Welcome to Greece
- Albania
- Australia
- Austria
- Bulgaria
- China
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- Estonia
- Finland
- Germany
- Hungary
- Israel
- Japan
- Latvia
- Lebanon
- Lithuania
- Malta
- Montenegro
- New Zealand
- Northern Macedonia
- Norway
- Romania
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- South Korea
- Switzerland
Travelers from these countries will only be allowed to fly into Thessaloniki or Athens until the islands open for international flights starting July 1. There will be spot checks at these airports for the virus.
Missing Countries – When Will They Be Allowed?
As you can see, Italy is not on the list and neither is Spain or France. As I said at the beginning, the US and the UK are not on it and Canada is not on it as well. Greece has said they will be examining the epidemiological data out of these and other countries and will be publishing a new list of countries that will be allowed after July 1. This does not mean that these countries will be allowed after that but more countries will be allowed as of July 1.
So, Who Gets to Visit?
The parameters for who is allowed is based on the origination of the flight – not the passport. That means that if a US traveler has been in Germany for a couple of months, they would be allowed in on a US passport.
The Questions
Here are some questions I and others have are these (and I have been e-mailing officials looking for firm answers and will update when I receive them):
- The country list is based on flight origination, not passport. So, what if an American holidays in Germany or Austria for a week and then travels to Greece?
- Citizens of Greece are always allowed back to Greece and that goes for immediate family members of citizens as well. What about family members that are not immediate family?
- What about people with residence permits (long-term or multi-year) that travel to a country not currently on the list and then want to return to Greece?
Put your own questions below as well and I will try to get those answered.
I’ll wait until July 1 to make my final decision about going to Greece this year. I think Greece will open to US citizens by July 15. Really at this point, I want to see what type of service will be coming back on Delta’s flights to make the long flight more enjoyable. Not sure I can take wearing a mask for over 10 hours. If it’s still mandatory, I may stay in the US this year and wait until after a vaccine is readily available.
this year “vacation” will be no fun- why even go!-I will stay home – the business of filling the plane and no social distance is a HUGE TURN OFF–hotel much less of a turn off
Thanks for the update Charlie!
What are your thoughts regarding Greece opening up to the US this year. And am curious regarding your last “question”, those with residence permits, having property in Greece.