Greeks hope for a bumper season as the tourists come back

Greece is hoping for a new tourism record this year, with arrivals likely to exceed 20 million, in a new sign that the country is winning back foreigners as the economy gets back on its feet.

After a poor season in 2012 – a year marked by back-to-back elections, political instability, and anti-austerity protests – the tourism industry seems finally to be getting its swagger back.

Last year saw a record 20 million foreign tourists visiting the country, as fears of a Greek exit from the euro receded.

The new forecast from officials is that this will be another record year, a welcome piece of good news in a country in a country looking to exit a six-year economic slump and where tourism is a big employer.

Greeks desperately need the cash injections brought by tourists looking for sunshine and to spend their holidays visiting ancient monuments.        

Their living standards have plunged, many cannot pay their taxes, the unemployment rate exceeds 26 percent, and more than half of all young people cannot find work.

So a bumper year for tourists would be welcome.

“2013 was a record year. In 2014, every indication shows that we are going to break this record,” Prime Minister Antonis Samaras told a tourism conference last month.

“Get ready for over 20 million visitors,” he said.

A move to reduce tax on food services by 10 percentage points is thought to have helped, while the culture ministry said last week that longer operating hours introduced on a trial basis at 33 museums and sites were already paying off.

“The data shows a major revenue increase,” said culture minister Panos Panagiotopoulos.

The number of visitors to two of...