Bank of Greece data showed on Monday that revenue from Greece’s top tourism industry has failed to keep up with arrivals, even during the annual summer slump that has sparked fears of overcrowding. tourism.
The bank said non-resident arrivals to Greece from January to August rose 9.9% year-on-year, while revenue increased just 3.2%.
In August alone, industry revenue fell 1.8% compared to last year even as tourist numbers increased 6.6%.
Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis downplayed the trend, telling reporters on Monday that “the overall figures for the season show we are heading for another record year”.
According to financial news website moneyreview.gr, the figures could balance by the end of the year, after taking into account September.
Some experts blame record high temperatures and heatwaves for shorter stays, as well as Northern European tourists – largely in Greece – taking less and less time off and cutting back. reduce spending.
A record 32.7 million foreign tourists visited the Mediterranean country in 2023. The National Bank of Greece said in June it expected that number to reach 35 million by year 2024.
Acknowledging the tension in some popular destinations such as Mykonos and Santorini, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis last month announced a 20 euro ($22) fee for passengers traveling to the islands.
But the prime minister has insisted that Greece “does not have a problem of overtourism”.
He said at a tourism event last week that what the country faces is “a large concentration of tourists in a few specific destinations during a few months of the year”.
Facilities have been expanded on several Aegean islands, Mitsotakis said, and authorities have temporarily frozen new tourism construction permits on Mykonos and Santorini.
