Kikilias: Tourism is a national issue – The possibilities are huge

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“Greek tourism is more than ever a national issue and has huge potential and increased prospects. It is a national issue because now, as never before, as a country, we need to be champions in tourism “. This was stated, among others, by the Minister of Tourism Vassilis Kikilias, who opened the work of the 5th International Hospitality Forum: “Hospitality in the post-covid era”, organized by the Hotel Chamber of Greece, at the Metropolitan Expo in the Xenia 2021 tourism exhibition.

“It is a national issue because now, as never before, as a country, we need to be champions in tourism and he explained that 1 in 4 euros of the Greek economy, ie 25% of GDP comes directly or directly from our tourism.”

Addressing professionals in the field, the Minister stood by the data of the Bank of Greece which show that in September 2021 travel receipts increased by 151% compared to the corresponding month of 2020, while incoming travel traffic in September 2021 was increased by 124.4%.

Among the factors that contributed to the success of 2021, Mr. Kikilias stood on the fact that “we did well because we gave early on the framework on which we will move. We said when and how we will open, with what protocols and with what measures “. At the same time, the Greek public administration, the government made a shocking effort, with the spearhead of the Ministry of Health, while at the same time Greece promoted the feeling of security that was the first criterion for choosing a destination this year, the minister said.

“At the same time, thanks to the initiative of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for the issuance of a European digital vaccination certificate, the mobility of travelers from EU countries and third countries that have adopted the relevant initiative has been facilitated to the greatest extent,” the minister said.

Focusing on 2022, the Minister of Tourism underlined that this year will be a milestone for Greek tourism and noted:

“Without wanting to rush, the forecasts for 2022, based on the agreements we sign with major airlines and tour operators around the world, are very strong compared to 2019. October bookings for the summer of 2022 , is 30% higher than it was in October 2018 for the summer of 2019 – before the coronavirus and crisis “.

In his intervention in the forum, the minister conveyed information from the agreements with the airlines implemented by the Ministry of Tourism.

“At the very large WTM show in London, we agreed with EasyJet to increase the availability by 500,000 airline seats by 2022. That is, instead of 1.1 it will bring 1.6 million visitors and may reach 2 million, while it was stated the will of the company to create technical bases in Heraklion and Corfu. We also signed an agreement with Jet2, which includes an increase of 600,000 seats for 2022, 270 flights per week to 15 airports in our country, the beginning of the period April 1, new routes from Birmingham and Manchester to Athens from April 15, supporting the city ​​break, our capital and Attica. But British Airways plans to use, in addition to Heathrow, Gatwick from December with 64 flights to Greece. “At the French exhibition Top Resa, we also concluded our agreements with Air France and Transavia”, said Mr. Kikilias.

For 2022, the ministry is working on global trends, Mr. Kikilias noted and said that Digital Nomads or Digital Nomads due to both the pandemic and telework, as a trend has expanded faster than expected. At this point he pointed out that the initiative for digital nomads has already been announced, which will start as a pilot in the first phase in the cities of Ermoupolis, Heraklion and Kalamata, in cooperation with the private sector, first with Wind, and with other companies later. Mr. Kikilias reiterated the main pillars that have been set by the ministry which are the following:

1. Upgrading the infrastructure.

2. Creating task force crisis management.

3. Digitization of the tourist product.

4. Upskilling and reskilling, ie the reform and upgrading of tourism education in Greece.

Based on these 4 pillars, the ministry, as stressed, will move to achieve the goals of extending the tourist season, the diffusion of visitors throughout the country, especially in new and unexplored corners of Greece, the attraction of quality tourism, the promotion cruising, attracting investment and sustainable tourism.

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