Greece is hoping to welcome new visitors again as the Mediterranean country lowers flight and accommodation costs. As the country sees a lower risk of coronavirus, it is cutting the Value Added Tax (VAT) or Goods and Services Tax (GST) on all modes of transport from 24% to 13%.
That means flights coming into the country, as well as its public transport and subsequent flights around Greece, will be cheaper. The country’s holiday season will begin on 15 June, the same date as easyJet reopens its domestic flights.
Speaking last month, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced: ‘The tourism period begins on 15 June, when seasonal hotels can reopen. Let us make this summer the epilogue of the [Covid-19] crisis.
‘We will win the economy war just as we won the health battle.’ From June to 1 July, travellers will be allowed to only fly into Thessaloniki or Athens. After that, planes will be allowed to resume flying into all destinations.
Greece is allowing a number of countries to fly in, including Britain, but as the U.K has had one of the highest rates of the virus, British travellers will be subject to testing.
The countries that are able to fly in without needing to have tests include Albania, Austria, FYROM, Bulgaria, Denmark, Switzerland, Estonia, Israel, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, Norway, South Korea, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Germany and Finland.
Though easyJet will begin operating from next week, Brits will only be able to travel within the UK or to France without quarantine.
At the moment, any arrivals into the U.K have to self-isolate for 14 days which has been criticised. But by the end of July, half of easyJet’s 1,022 routes will be reopened, increasing to three-quarters by August.
