Cyprus takes a big step in restarting its all-important tourism sector with the reopening today of Larnaca and Paphos airports.
Five arrivals and five departures are scheduled at Larnaca Airport today — to and from Athens, Tel Aviv and Sofia. There is also a repatriation flight from the UK.
The first flight leaves for Athens at 8 am, while the first arrival will be a little after 10 am from Tel Aviv with Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos due at the airport to welcome the arriving passengers.
The airports operate under a strict protocol with access permitted only to passengers and employees.
In addition, Cyprus has launched an online portal where all incoming passengers must obtain a Cyprus Flight Pass prior to boarding.
The reopening of the airports since they were closed down on March 21 is part of phase three of the easing of the restrictions which kicked off on June 5 with the opening of swimming pools and ends on June 24 when measures will be eased further.
Today will also see the opening of
- malls
- ports/cruise ships,
- catering establishments indoor service but taking into consideration their size and capacity depending on square metres
- open air theatres and open air cinemas (restrictions on numbers depending on square metres)
- sports competitions without fans
- nurseries, kindergartens
- children’s clubs
- outdoor children’s play areas
- all day and summer schools (reopening of canteen and kitchens provided food is served in closed containers. There must be supervision of children at canteens to ensure distancing)
- summer schools
And from June 13, the following will open
- Casinos
- Dance and other schools (eg kickboxing etc)
- Gyms
- Theme parks, water parks, luna parks
Paphos Airport also reopens today but for the time being, scheduled commercial flights are due to start after June 20 although a Hermes Airport official told CyBC radio on Tuesday morning that this may change.
