The “return” of Athens as a travel destination

At 2019 levels the occupancy of the hotels in Athens this summer moved.

July almost completely approached the figures of 2019, August moved at traditionally low levels, due to the fact that most people head to island destinations, while the messages for September and October are particularly optimistic.

As the general secretary of the Attica and Argosaronic Hotel Association, Evgenios Vassilikos, emphasized to the Athens Macedonian News Agency, September is a “strong” month for the hotels of the Capital and this is due to professional tourism and specifically to the conferences scheduled in the first month of Autumn.

At this point, it is recalled that, as the CEO of the Development and Tourism Promotion Company of the Municipality of Athens, Vangelis Vlachos, has recently reported to APE-MBE, Athens for 2022 emerged as the leading destination for conferences and meetings in Europe and as the fifth worldwide in a related survey by American Express Meetings & Events. In addition, Athens has been named the top European conference destination by the Business Destinations Travel Awards.

Regarding October, Mr. Vasilikos emphasizes that there is a dynamic in the level of bookings, however it is too early for a safe assessment. For the remaining months of the year, Mr. Vasilikos expresses his intense concern about what will happen next. After noting that the hotels of Attica do not show an extension of the tourist season, the general secretary of the Union states that there are no reservations after October.

What do we want for the next day of tourism?

At this point, Mr. Vassilikos points out that the high mobility of foreign visitors to the center of Athens is not reflected in overnight stays in hotels. And this is because the largest portion of visitors are directed to short-term rental accommodation, as it states. In this regard, once again c. secretary of the EXAAA requests regulation of the specific market but also a strategy for the next day of tourism in Athens. “How many people do we want in Athens? Do we want 5, 10 million or 3 million that will leave income corresponding to the above sizes”, he said, among other things.

“Do we want quantitative or qualitative goals? Quantitatively, Greece can receive 3 times its population, but they should be channeled throughout Greece”, he notes and explains: “This does not mean that the majority of visitors will come in winter, however the in summer, for example, mountain destinations could develop into thematic destinations and attract people. For example, indoor skiing, could develop into a field of new activities capable of attracting people in summer. Creation of walking paths as well as sports activities can to be added to the tourist portfolio of mountain destinations in the summer.

Question about the winter season

However, the question for Mr. Vasilikos is what will happen this winter in Athens. European citizens, whose family budgets have already been affected by the energy issue, “will they have income for vacations in the winter?”, asks Mr. Vassilikos

However, Mr. Vassilikos estimates that a big boost to Athens’ tourism will come, among other things, with the implementation of a large conference space, capable of attracting large conferences, but also with the implementation of major sporting events. The classic Athens Marathon, as well as the Acropolis Rally, are in this direction.

How the occupancy rate in hotels moved based on the recent data from EXAAA

It is common knowledge that five-star hotels in Athens performed better in Athens this year, compared to other hotel categories. In the meantime, it should be emphasized that since 2017, more than 70 hotels have been opened in the capital, while at least 2,500 new rooms are in the final stage of construction.

Athens – Attica Hotel Performance Data 7 months 2022

According to the latest data from EXAAA, for the first time after the two years of the pandemic, this year’s July closed with a remarkable positive average occupancy for Athens hotels of 89.3%, i.e. it managed to approach 2019 – and the then good occupancy of July 2019 , which was 89.8%.

At the 7-month level, however, this positive performance of Athens only managed to slightly reduce the ‘scissor’ between the years 2022 and 2019 in the average occupancy of its hotels, from 21.7% to -17.8%. Thus, the 7th month of 2022, compared to the corresponding 7th month of 2019, closed with a negative sign of 20%, in terms of the average occupancy of the units in the Greek capital. Finally, however, the course of the Average Room Rate (ADR) is positive, as it showed an increase of 20.6% at the level of 7 months compared to 2021.

RES-EMP

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