Can I travel to Greece from the UK and what traffic light list is the country on?

18 May 2021, 18:29

What are the rules for travel to Greece and is the country on the green list?

The rules on foreign travel were adapted on Monday May 17, allowing people in Wales, Scotland and England to travel to certain countries for holidays.

Currently, there are only 12 countries on the 'green list', which covers countries that visitors won't need to quarantine on their return from.

Most countries in the world are on the 'amber list', including popular European destinations like France, Spain and Greece.

Heres your need-to-know on the travel rules for Greece.

What list is Greece on?

Greece is currently on the 'amber list', meaning that people returning from the destination will be required to quarantine for 10 days at home on their return and pay for Covid tests.

Read more: What does the 'amber list' mean and what countries are on it?

Are Brits allowed to go on holiday to Greece?

While people in England, Wales and Scotland are legally allowed to travel to Greece, the government has advised against all non-essential travel to amber list countries.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has previously said “you should not be travelling to these places right now”, and Health Secretary Matt Hancock said you should not travel to these countries "unless it’s absolutely necessary, and certainly not for holiday purposes".

Mr Hancock said in a recent radio interview: "The red and amber list countries are places that you shouldn’t go to unless you have an absolutely compelling reason."

When asked why travel to amber list countries was not illegal, the Prime Minister's spokesman said: "Our advice is that no one should be travelling to amber countries, that’s in the interests of public health.

'There may be unavoidable, essential reasons for which people still have to travel to amber list countries, that’s why the rules are there.

"It’s right to have this three-tiered approach because there are some limited circumstances where – for unavoidable work reasons, for example – it’s necessary to travel to these amber list countries, where we know there are concerns but don’t have specific instances of variants of concern."

When will Greece be added to the green list?

We currently don't know when the country will be added to the green list. The list will be reviewed every three weeks, with the first expected on June 7.

Now read:

What countries are on the green list and what are the rules for travel?