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Covid-19: UK Removes Greece from its ‘Travel Corridor’, Leaves Five Islands on Safe List
Posted On 12 Nov 2020
Photo source: Heathrow Airport
Travelers arriving to the United Kingdom from anywhere in Greece, except from five islands, must self-isolate for 14 days as of 4am on Saturday, November 14, according to the updated travel advice for Greece by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).
The UK announcement to remove Greece from its “travel corridor” exemptions list for quarantine, was made following the rise in coronavirus (Covid-19) cases in Greece.
The islands of Corfu, Crete, Kos, Rhodes and Zakynthos will not be removed from the exempt list, meaning that travelers from those destinations will not have to self-isolate upon arrival to the UK.
The UK’s Department for Transport said that data showed a rise in newly reported Covid-19 cases in Greece over the past two weeks – with a 136 percent increase in new cases to 16,429 between November 5 and 12 from 6,965 between October 22 and 29.
The FCDO’s travel update was also announced by UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps on twitter: “Latest data also means we have to REMOVE all of GREECE apart from Corfu, Crete, Rhodes, Zakynthos and Kos from the Travel Corridor list. From 4am Saturday 14th November, if you arrive into the UK from this destination you will need to self-isolate.”
He also announced that the travel ban on Denmark will also be extended for a further 14 days and that Bahrein, Chile, Iceland, Cambodia, Laos, UAE, Qatar and Turks and Caicos Islands have been added to the Travel Corridor list.
Until 2 December, travelling is restricted from England except in limited circumstances such as for work or for education. Different rules apply in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Completely useless if you are based on one of these island, and pointless! Didn’t anyone tell them in the UK that there are no direct flights from most of these islands to the UK in the winter – therefore any travel has to transit through Athens or Thessaloniki, thereby dropping us in the mainland quarantine zone. Typical of the way travel in the pandemic has been handled by the UK all the way through. If they want to allow travel from these islands they need to re-think transit regulations.