With reduced bookings by 20% in relation to the corresponding period of 2022, tourism professionals in Pelion are expecting Christmas visitors, who will give economic life to the area hit by the bad weather Daniel.

The recent disasters combined with the galloping precision that “tightens” the budget of the visitors, seem to have affected the plans of those who choose Pelion for the Christmas holidays. So far, the occupancy rates are at 50-60%, a period when they traditionally reach 80%, hotel industry representatives explain to Thesstoday.gr.

However, the president of the Hotel Association of Magnesia, Giorgos Zafeiris, appears optimistic about the tourist traffic and estimates that bookings will increase in the next period. “Last year was much better, we didn’t have the problems we have this year, but bookings are moving at a very good rate. They have exceeded 60% and there will clearly be last-minute visitors”, he notes to Thesstoday.gr.

According to him, the damage in the winter villages of Pelion has been repaired and the hotels and roads are ready and fit to welcome the people. “Almost all the hotels of Pelion and Volos are open. The problems have been fixed and normality has returned”, says Mr. Zafeiris, while adding that several hotels have reduced their prices, wanting to banish the “stigma” of the disasters. “We already have many offers from hoteliers who want to invite guests and have dropped their prices to the levels of 2010”, he underlines.

At 50% bookings in rooms for rent

With hope for last-minute visitors, rental room owners see bookings so far reaching 50%, as opposed to 80% for the same period in 2022. The president of the Association of Owners of Rental Rooms of Magnesia, Evangelia Daniellaki, tells Thesstoday. gr that “the world is still locked up, even though Volos is operating normally and Pelion is ready to host them. We have reservations for 50% of the rooms, while last year we had 80% and we believe that many will book at the last minute”. At the same time, he adds that the villages of South Pelion, such as Milina and Platanias – which are summer destinations – are still struggling to return to normalcy as they belong to the area that received the biggest blow.

Guests book only one night due to punctuality

Ms. Daniellaki estimates that punctuality also played a role in the reduced number of reservations, as there are not a few people who book a room just for one night. “It’s not just about the disasters, the world is trying to steal as much as possible to cope with the difficulties of the time. Many book only for one night and not for two or three, as in the past”, he explains.

Even today, there are businesses that are waiting for the amount of 4,000 euros to be deposited from the state aid, according to Ms. Daniellaki. “Most owners have received the amount of the first advance and are waiting until the end of 2023 to get 35% of the remaining assistance, as the state has pledged to give 70% for the restoration of damages. However, in many companies the 4,000 euros have not yet been deposited”, explains the president of SIEDM. For his part, the president of the Hoteliers’ Union notes that the greatest help in the area was given by the Chamber of Hotels and also by the media, with the tourism promotion of the area. “There was no support from the state as it should have been,” says Mr. Zafeiris.