- United and Delta will offer seasonal daily services to Iceland and Greece this summer.
- Both countries are heavily dependent on tourism, and the EU is under pressure to reopen travel.
- International travel fell by more than 75% in March compared to 2019, according to industry data.
American tourists eager to go abroad will be able to visit three European destinations this summer, as long as they can prove that they are vaccinated against COVID-19.
On Monday, United Airlines announced that it will start seasonal daily service to Iceland and Greece starting in July.
United’s move follows last month’s Delta announcement that it will provide daily services to Iceland from three US cities (Boston Logan, Minneapolis-St. Paul and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airports) starting in May, and the Delta route map indicates flights from JFK to Athens will resume in June.
In addition, United will offer routes three times a week to Croatia, reflecting an increase in search activity on its website in the past month, the company told Bloomberg. Each of the European routes are new to United and are as follows: Chicago to Reykjavik, Iceland starting June 3; Washington-Athens, Greece from July 1; and Newark in Dubrovnik, Croatia from 8 July.
Iceland is part of the Schengen area for visa-free travel, but is not a member of the European Union and is therefore exempt from the general restriction on non-EU visitors. Iceland Air recently warned international travelers that the country could not be used as a kind of gateway to the mainland, saying that “further trips from Iceland to the rest of Europe are not currently allowed for non-Schengen residents”.
Meanwhile, Greece has just lifted its restrictions on travel to the US that can provide a vaccination certificate or a negative COVID test result. As an EU member, Greece’s action puts additional pressure on the bloc to reopen travel more widely.
Both Greece and Iceland are heavily dependent on dollars for tourism. Tourism accounts for about a tenth of Greece’s economy, and its revenues have fallen by 80% as a result of the pandemic. In 2019, tourism accounted for 42% of Iceland’s economy. In an attempt to stimulate visitors, Iceland Air promotes round-trip prices from $ 349 and waives exchange fees to give flyers more flexibility when traveling.
Data from an industry trade group show that international travel fell by more than 75% in March compared to 2019.