Coronavirus and travel: Greece considers second lockdown after tourists bring spike of cases

Greece could reintroduce some lockdown measures, after the country has seen a spike in Covid-19 cases following the return of tourism.

There are now more active infections in Greece than at any other point during the pandemic – 2,205 people in Greece are known to have the virus right now.

On Friday, 60 people were confirmed to have contracted the virus, the highest daily number since April 21. More than 100 new cases reported in the last 10 days have been among incoming tourists.

British holidaymakers are due to return to Greece from July 15, with UK flights resuming on that date. However, Greek authorities are now considering introducing stricter lockdown measures, potentially from as early as tomorrow (July 13).

Government spokesperson Stelios Petsas told local media: "We knew from the beginning that when we gradually opened the country's gates to the world, we would have imported incidents."

He added that he is "determined to protect the majority from the frivolous few."

This could mean tougher border checks, stepping up inspections at bars and restaurants and potentially introducing travel restrictions from countries with higher rates of infection.

As of July 14, Bulgarians crossing the border into Greece must provide proof that they have tested negative in the past 72 hours, after the country registered a daily record of 330 new infections on Thursday last week.