The important development, investment and financial role that the Ministry of Tourism has acquired in recent years is underlined by the minister, Vassilis Kikilias, in his article in “Navtemboriki”, emphasizing the excellent performance of Greek tourism, but also the significant prospects for further development of the sector.

Mr. Kikilias points out that “2022 was a truly exceptional year for Greek tourism, as travel revenues exceeded by 2.6 billion euros the initial forecasts of the Ministry of Finance for 15 billion, reaching 17.6 billion and allowing the government to proceed with targeted policies to relieve citizens from the burdens of the imported energy and inflationary crisis”.

At the same time, referring to the data available to the ministry so far, he underlines that “they make us optimistic that we will do even better and that the goal of increasing tourism revenue by at least 10% compared to 2022 is completely achievable, strengthening even more the Greek economy, as – let’s not forget – the tourism industry provides 25% of the GDP”.

Specifically, it states that according to the data of the Civil Aviation Service (CAA), during the first quarter of 2023, a total of 6,877,069 foreign and domestic passengers passed through the country’s airports.

This figure represents a 52.8% increase compared to the same period in 2022 and a 2.9% increase compared to the first quarter of 2019.

Especially for “Eleftherios Venizelos” airport, until April the traffic reached a total of 2.14 million passengers, increased by 29.8% compared to April 2022, while during the period January – April 2023 the international passenger traffic in “El. Venizelos” increased by 54.7% compared to 2022 and 3.4% compared to 2019.

At the same time, the Minister of Tourism notes that during the two months of January – February the turnovers in accommodation and catering were increased by 27.03% and 20.39% respectively compared to the first two months of 2022. He adds that “this year’s season started from at the beginning of March, which demonstrates that our goal of extending the tourist season has been achieved and now our goal – which is implemented through a series of actions by the EOT and the ministry – is the 12-month tourist season, not only for the destinations with a strong brand, but also for alternative options for travelers and tourists”.

Regarding the next four years, Mr. Kikilias states that “our main goal is investments in all kinds of infrastructure, from ports, marinas and jetties, to waste and wastewater management, the expansion of the 5G network throughout the country etc. Projects that, not only upgrade the tourism product of the country, but at the same time have a positive effect overall on the quality of life of our fellow citizens”.

It also underlines that “tourism is an excellent expression of the popular economy, as it strengthens small and medium-sized enterprises, family businesses, local trade and gives work to thousands of people throughout the country, thus contributing to prosperity and development in all flat”.