Russian Airlines to Resume Flights to Greece on July 24

Russian airlines will continue regular flights to Greece, as well as France, the Czech Republic, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Lebanon, Croatia, and Ethiopia. The resumed service will begin July 24, this Saturday.

Russian airlines plan to provide seven flights a week from Russia to Greece, arriving in Thessaloniki and Heraklion. The Russian government advises citizens to get vaccinated before traveling abroad.

Tatyana Golikova, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federations also stated that the treatment of Russian tourists who fall ill while on vacation is not the responsibility of the country hosting them.

The renewal in airline service to Greece and other countries comes at a tense time in Greece’s fight against the coronavirus.

Rising COVID cases may lead to new restrictions for UK tourists as Russian Airlines resumes service

COVID cases are on a steep incline in Greece causing experts to speculate that quarantines may become required when leaving or entering the country for tourists from the UK.

The UK government has issued a tiered list of countries, ranging from good-to-go “Green list” countries all the way to “Red list” countries, which should not be visited at all unless travel is unavoidable.

Green list countries will require travelers to test negative before returning to the UK, as well as undergo a PCR test two days after arrival; however, they will not involve a quarantine for travelers when they arrive back in the UK.

The daily cases of Covid-19 recorded in Greece remained elevated as 3,565 total new infections were recorded across the country on Tuesday. Half of Greece’s daily coronavirus cases have now been linked to the Delta variant, according to Demetrios Thanos, President of the Biomedical Research Foundation at the Academy of Athens.

With this drastic increase in reported cases and the specter of the Delta variant–as well as other emerging variants like the Beta variant–some expect Greece to be placed on the ‘Amber’ list of the UK’s tier.

Amber light nations will require 10 days of isolation upon travelers’ return to the UK. Vacationers will also need a negative test before their return flight and two PCR tests after arrival — one on day two and the second on day eight.

In this tier, there is also the option to take a PCR test on day five of quarantine in order to be allowed to exit quarantine early, which could be a relief for British travelers returning from Greece.

Furthermore, the UK has stressed that ministers expect even Amber list countries to be treated as not viable options for vacation.

“It is very, very clear – you should not be going to an ‘Amber list’ country except for some extreme circumstance, such as the serious illness of a family member. You should not be going to an ‘Amber list’ country on holiday,” said Boris Johnson during the Prime Minister’s Question Time on May 19.