Mount Athos Allows Entry To Visitors Under Several Conditions - Greek Foreign Ministry

ATHENS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th May, 2021) � Greece's Mount Athos, one of the centers of the Eastern Orthodox monasticism, will allow entry to pilgrims starting Tuesday as long as they observe certain conditions, the Greek Foreign Ministry announced.

In accordance with new measures, Athonite monasteries are allowed to host up to ten pilgrims, cenobitic houses � five, and monastic cells � one.

Pilgrims are prohibited from using permit issued for one monastery to gain entry into another.

In addition, all monks, state officials and monastery workers will have to be tested for COVID-19 before boarding a ship to the Mount Athos peninsula.

Located in northeastern Greece, Mount Athos is an autonomous polity with the Greek state. It is one of the major pilgrimage destination in the Orthodox world as its residents uphold ancient monastic way of life.