Sharjah24 – AFP: Greece and Cyprus relaxed their Covid restrictions Wednesday ahead of their crucial summer tourist seasons.

Both relaxed their mask mandates, while keeping them in place for public transport in cities, retirement homes and hospitals.

The government in Cyprus decided last week to lift all restrictions at airports ahead of the hot summer season for the tourism-reliant Mediterranean island.

Travellers heading there are no longer required to show a certificate of vaccination or recovery or to take a PCR test.

Greece has already suspended compulsory Covid tests for travellers arriving with a European vaccination certificate.

But health experts there are still considering whether to relax mask restrictions on taxis and the boats connecting the mainland to the islands.

On Wednesday, Greek Transport Minister Thanos Plevris said masks were no longer required on planes and for inter-city coach travel, state broadcaster ERT reported.

Tourism makes up nearly a quarter of Greece's gross domestic product and the government in Athens has been gradually relaxing Covid-related restrictions since February.

Cypriot Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos said air passenger traffic in May reached 77 percent of the figure for the same month in the pre-pandemic year of 2019, with an average of 30,000 passengers a day.

Last year, Cyprus saw a 51 percent drop in tourists compared to 2019 -- the island's record year when 3.97 million people came.

Nearly 15 percent of the island's gross domestic product is generated from tourism.

Greece has registered more than 29,800 deaths from Covid, while Cyprus has recorded 1,059.