Tourism

With New Year's Eve around the corner, the occupancy rate in hotels in Türkiye's tourism hotspot of Antalya has already exceeded 80 percent.

Policies related to the sustainability of Greek destinations and actions assumed by tourism businesses will play a catalytic role in the near future, Greek ministers told the congress of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) on Tuesday. 

SETE's one-day annual conference related to a productive dialog for the next day in tourism titled "Reframing Tourism." 

Despite the large increase in air arrivals recorded in 2023, Greek hotels registered approximately the same occupancy rates as in 2022, while their prices increased, reported the President of the Institute of Tourism Research and Forecasts (ITEP), Konstantina Svinou, based on a recent survey concerning the May-October touristic period. 

Alternate National Economy and Finance Minister Nikos Papathanasis on Friday signed a decision for the inclusion of the "Digital transformation of the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO)" in the projects financed by the Recovery and Resilience Fund.

Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni said the government is trying hard to prepare an even better future for Greek tourism, boosted also by the significant resources supplied by the European Union.

Representatives of the tourism industry are hopeful that domestic and international tourism activity will gather momentum around New Year's Eve.

Hotels are preparing to welcome Turkish holidaymakers as well as Europeans starting Dec. 24, while Russian tourists are expected to start to arrive in the county from Jan. 6.

BELGRADE - Serbia registered 1.5 pct fewer tourist visits in October 2023 relative to the same month of last year and the number of overnight stays was down by 13 pct, according to figures released by the national statistical office on Thursday.

"We shouldn't be complacent," notes the president of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE), Yiannis Paraschis, a few weeks before the end of of 2023, the new reference year for the sector, as records are being recorded both in arrivals as well as receipts.

Plovdiv's tourism sector is steadily approaching a complete rebound, showcasing a return to pre-pandemic levels, as revealed by the latest data from the National Statistics for the initial nine months of this year. Notably, the number of overnight stays has even exceeded the levels seen in the pre-pandemic year of 2019, when the city held the esteemed title of European Capital of Culture.

The direct effects on the hotel businesses of Thessaly and Rhodes from the summer floods and fires, respectively, are calculated at 95 million euros.

The Institute of Tourism Research and Forecasts (ITEP) of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels estimates the effects of Storm Daniel on Thessaly at 189,000 overnight stays and €22.4 million.