Haris Theocharis

Travelers arriving in Greece after departing from airports in areas with an increased number of coronavirus cases - i.e. with a negative epidemic picture - will undergo mandatory tests and quarantine, Tourism Minister Haris Theocharis tells Kathimerini.

Seeking to revive tourism and other sectors hit by the coronavirus pandemic, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced a reboot plan on Wednesday to the tune of 24 billion euros that will serve as a three-pillar bridge from "from today's uncertainty to tomorrow's security."

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will announce steps to revive the economy in a televised address on Wednesday. These steps will be mainly focused on tourism but will also concern other sectors affected by the coronavirus pandemic. 

The local airline industry considers the Tourism Ministry's health protocols for this summer season to be feasible and realistic, after Minister Haris Theocharis recently presented the protocols' main points at an online event.

Greece is developing a three-point plan to help reopen the country to tourism after arrivals came to a halt as a result of nationwide lockdowns and extensive flight bans aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

The Prime Minister's Office is almost ready to announce its integrated package for the revival of tourism which has been put together with the cooperation of the sector's association and other competent ministers, as well as the health authorities.

The suspension of the operations and payments of major international tour operators such as Tui AG and the FTI Group due to the coronavirus epidemic are creating a cash drought for Greek tourism and threatening to devastate the season's prospects.

Greece is turning into a focal point for global tourism professionals and investors, as World Tourism Organization Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili announced during a visit on Monday to Athens that the creation of a tourism academy in Greece and a global forum on investing in Greek tourism are under consideration.

The general secretary of the World Tourism Organisation Zurab Pololikashvili will pay an official visit to Greece on Monday.

Pololikashvili will hold a series of meetings with the leadership of the Tourism Ministry and with representatives of the tourism sector.

Tourism Minister Haris Theocharis estimated on Thursday that the impact on Greek tourism from the coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, China will be minimal, if any, adding that the target of having half a million Chinese visitors next year remains unchanged.