CHIOS, Greece — The man taking the last drag of his cigarette in the sweltering heat outside his convenience store in Volissos, a village on the Greek island of Chios, was clear: No mask, no shopping. The Greek islands of Crete and Mykonos remain areas which will require quarantine on return to the UK. Greece has only a slightly smaller population, about 10.4 million, but is less densely inhabited because so many people live on islands like Chios — naturally isolated, or trapped, depending on one’s perspective. After your return trip from areas with a local COVID-19 transmission: - Stay alert for any symptoms of illness for the following 14 days. On This Island, Everyone Knows Your Name (if You Have Covid-19) When someone tests positive in a small, close-knit community on a Greek island, privacy is the first thing to go. The use of a face mask is obligatory on public transport means, taxis, elevators, hospitals, when visiting government services buildings, in shops and other commercial establishments. Nick Kampouris - Dec 26, 2020. The Greek island of Chios has had about 30 confirmed coronavirus cases since the outbreak began, and no deaths. The first case in Greecewas confirmed on 26 February 2020 when a 38-year-old woman from Thessalonikiwho had recently visited Νorthern Italy, was confirmed to be infected. They are advised to avoid nonessential travel to areas with a local COVID-19 transmission. Holidaymakers arriving from mainland Greece and Greek islands, except Mykonos, to England will no longer need to quarantine Can I travel to Greece? Targeted and random testing may take place in entrance checkpoints, in order to aid the epidemiological research. Epirus in northwestern Greece, the Ionian Islands and the Aegean islands are currently the only green areas in Europe, according to a revised map published on Thursday by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) charting the spread of the coronavirus. ... Local lockdowns have been enforced on islands … Greek authorities ask people to maintain a physical distance from others as best they can. If you find yourself on the island during orthodox Easter, stroll around its kadounia (narrow streets) on Holy Saturday midnight; due to an old custom, Corfiots throw clay pitchers off their balconies, along with chocolate for visitors and children. All international travelers arriving to Greece must fill a Passenger Locator Form ( PLF) 24 hours before entering the country at the latest. Still, there was the mental whiplash of adjusting to pandemic life in a small, isolated place. See also the advice to incoming travellers provided by the General Secretariat for Civil Protection, here. • On 26 February, the first case in Greece was confirmed. - Avoid any contact with other people if you have a fever and/or respiratory symptoms such as cough or shortness of breath. In a community that is more insulated and largely spared from infections, contagion can arrive only externally. The shop where her mother worked ended up announcing that it had carried out a thorough decontamination, and implored people to stop gossiping. ... That pride, and what he hopes will be the relative safety of Greece's Covid-19 strategy thus far, will be a draw this summer. With gossip swirling fast, 24 hours later everyone — even I!— knew her name. Latest UK advice and Covid … See here detailed data about the progress of the pandemic in Greece, supplied on the website of the Greek Government. The government plan for dealing with the disease’s new surge is assessed and updated on the basis of the daily epidemiological data. So when, one August day, the Greek government’s daily official tally of positive cases included three on the island of Chios, the country’s fifth-largest and not a major tourist destination, the chatter among the local community seemed to overpower the mesmerizing tune of the cicada song that floods the air in the long Greek summer. According to the FCDO, the Greek authorities may require you to undergo testing for coronavirus as part of a health screening when you arrive in Greece. Corfu (Greek: Κέρκυρα, Kerkyra) is the northernmost of the Ionian Islands in Greece. ... Local lockdowns have been enforced on islands … Travellers arriving in England from seven Greek islands will have to self-isolate for 14 days from 04:00 BST on Wednesday, Grant Shapps has said. A coffin lies in a grave in a cemetery set up for victims of COVID-19, in the northern city of Thessaloniki, Greece, Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020. “And personally, I don’t want my business to be a node in that spread.”, On This Island, Everyone Knows Your Name (if You Have Covid-19). Greek authorities have reimposed a lockdown through January 18, … During your stay in areas with a local COVID-19 transmission you should: - Postpone your trip if you have a fever and/or respiratory symptoms, such as cough or shortness of breath. Greece extends lockdown past 2 months, expands vaccinations Greece has extended a two-month lockdown by at least one week, through Jan. 18, and announced plans to increase the number of people getting COVID-19 vaccines from 5,000 to 8,000 per day By ELENA BECATOROS and DEREK GATOPOULOS Associated Press January 8, 2021, 9:44 AM All content included on this site consists intellectual property of GNTO and you are not allowed to reproduce the whole or part of this work in any way. Make sure you mention all the details about your recent trip. Covid-19: Greece has second best record for confirmed cases in the EU PM Mitsotakis from Evros borders: The new fence is the least we can do to make Greeks feel safe You can also contact the National Public Health Organisation in Greece (1135, 210-5212054). Travellers arriving in England from seven Greek islands will have to self-isolate for 14 days from 04:00 BST on Wednesday, Grant Shapps has said. Greece has become a top holiday destination among British sunseekers after the UK government changed travel advice required people who return from Spain to England to quarantine for two weeks. Another rumor spread that the second case was a young woman in the island’s main town, whose mother worked at a popular cosmetics store. A total of 721 Covid-19 cases were diagnosed in Greece on Friday, which is 211 more than the 510 cases that were recorded in the country just one day earlier, on Thursday. Since the business reopened in late May, Kelly Patra, the owner, asked her workers to avoid talking about the pandemic, deflect if they’re asked about possible cases, and encourage customers to seek formal information sources. Keeping Covid-19 out of the Greek islands involves mobile testing teams in high-powered boats crossing the Aegean Sea. As of writing, the same set of measures and safety restrictions apply throughout the country. I knew that escaping Brussels, my current home, to visit my parents in Greece would be different. Greece Classed Among Countries With Lowest COVID Positivity Rates in EU. As of writing, the same set of measures and safety restrictions apply throughout the country. Greece has contained COVID-19 far better than major European economies. Seven Greek islands are being removed from England’s list of locations exempt from 14-day Covid-19 quarantine – but not the country’s mainland, in a … Coronavirus: Seven Greek islands added to quarantine list as rule change revealed. Twenty four hours before entering Greece, visitors will have to fill in a Passenger Locator Form (PLF) where they will provide their address in the country and other details. We have two funds dedicated to our COVID-19 work for your consideration: Patient Care Fund: Support for general patient care needs including the purchasing of ventilators and personal protective equipment such as masks, the hiring of additional clinical staff, capacity expansion, and lab and clinical research. Santorini. The two villages on the island … Greece Classed Among Countries With Lowest COVID Positivity Rates in EU. Mr. Harrison looks after rentals his family has owned on the island since the 1980s. Down at the beach, waiters who until the day before had only reluctantly donned face shields, while ferrying mezze and cold beers to those tanning by the gently lapping Aegean waters, needed no prompting to cover their faces. Giorgos Vasilikos tending to a mastic tree in his orchard. Greece has contained COVID-19 far better than major European economies. During the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, Greece has timely taken all necessary measures that effectively slowed down its spread in the country. If you find yourself on the island during orthodox Easter, stroll around its kadounia (narrow streets) on Holy Saturday midnight; due to an old custom, Corfiots throw clay pitchers off their balconies, along with chocolate for visitors and children. Rhodes Covid-19 Tip : The Best Corona Free Beaches on the Greek Island of Rhodes. Nick Kampouris - Dec 26, 2020. “This 20-year old guy who went on holiday to Zakynthos,” a Greek island on the other side of the country popular with British tourists, the man at the convenience store informed me, confidently. So attention turned to the few tourists; to migrants like myself who were visiting family; and to locals who were returning from taking a break in other parts of the country where more people were getting sick. Holidaymakers arriving from mainland Greece and Greek islands, except Mykonos, to England will no longer need to quarantine Can I travel to Greece? Greece records 721 cases, 386 intubations under lockdown. Rising coronavirus cases prompted Scotland and Wales to introduce their own self-isolation rules. “It is everyone’s responsibility to look after their own health,” said the store’s manager on a public Facebook post, but, the post continued, people should not “inflate information that could harm people’s livelihoods.”, “Malicious rumors spread very fast, but the truth is ignored,” said a post added the next day. image caption Clusters of coronavirus cases have been linked to the Greek island of Zakynthos, also known as Zante ... That pride, and what he hopes will be the relative safety of Greece's Covid-19 strategy thus far, will be a draw this summer. More than 30 people, mainly young Greeks, tested positive for COVID-19 within a 24-hour period, an outbreak officials fear could spread rapidly across the idyllic, pine-cloaked island. Mykonos set to be Greece’s new coronavirus epicentre due to wild parties A popular island in Greece which attracts thousands of partygoers … There is no vaccine for this new corona virus. Belgium has had one of the worst coronavirus records globally, with nearly 100,000 infections and 9,930 deaths to date among its approximately 11.5 million people. The government plan for dealing with the disease’s new surge is assessed and updated on the basis of the daily epidemiological data. Tourists with masks sit on a leisure boat on the Aegean island of Rhodes on August 29, 2020, amid the COVID-19 novel coronavirus outbreak. “It’s dangerous to gossip about something like this because people become stigmatized and it breeds panic, people then start to ask where this person’s children go to school, where her husband works, etc.,” Ms. Patra said in an interview. Visitors must consider the risks when travelling. On Wednesday, the Government revealed a task force to develop a coronavirus … One afternoon at the salon, while masked ladies were having haircuts and blowouts, talk of the pandemic was largely absent. Chios, with 50,000 residents and famous for its leading role in Greece’s huge shipping industry, inhabits a distinctly different Covid-19 universe from Brussels, the headquarters of the European Union and Belgium’s capital, with a population of 1.2 million. “Our work is fairly easy, people cooperate and aren’t secretive,” he said. So far the island of Kimolos has not had a single case of coronavirus. Each case takes about three hours to fully trace, said Pantelis Kalandropoulos, whose day job is chief of traffic police for the island, but who these days doubles up as head of virus contact tracing. Even as shared spaces can act as hubs for the spread of both disease and gossip, one such place, the Louiza & Kelly hair salon, put in place a form of a no-coronavirus-gossip policy alongside stepped-up hygiene and mandatory mask-wearing. Greece defends Covid safety as Johnson urged to review quarantine rules This article is more than 2 months old. Greek islands: How to choose the right one for your holiday. Greece recorded 121 … After that grim mission, the desire to get out was so potent that we decided to travel 12 hours across Europe on two flights, and face a week of isolation plus some expensive coronavirus tests on arrival — all with a 2-year-old in tow.