Foreign visitors to our country who have come with the German will not face any problems tour operator FTIwho filed for bankruptcy.

On her island Zakynthos through this group there are 50 people, who are accommodated in 10 hotels.

According to what was stated by the tourist agent, Manthos Bolidis:

“We were not surprised by the development because the problem with FTI has been building for the last 9-10 months. There was a problem with their liquidity over the winter, so we realized that we would have various issues like that.

There was an interest from FTI to be sold to another company. All this started and created some fears. So we tried to close all the partners with FTI the accounts we had from last season and at the beginning of this season the procedures were entered to have prepayments for services provided to the company.

This is how we came to create this unpleasant event today. We hope that at least at the last minute a solution will be found, but unfortunately the German government and the investors from America found themselves in a situation where they did not want to take the risk. The large part of German tourism moves to Crete and Rhodes. All other regions have a very small participation, however.

In Zakynthos we have around 50 people at the moment who have come through the group. Around 10 hotels host them. Their reservations are guaranteed, so customers do not face any problem with their accommodation and transportation. Those who have arrived so far today (yesterday) are assured of a peaceful stay. We also had a meeting with FTI and we are in constant contact so that issues do not arise that will create a difficult situation for us”.

Collapse and reflexes

Regarding the “turbulence” in the tourist market from the collapse of the German tour operator and the reflexes of the ministry and the EOT, the Minister of Tourism Olga Kefalogianni, who visited our island on Tuesday, said:

“The Ministry of Tourism and the Hellenic Tourism Organization had an immediate response to the issue that arose after the collapse of the German tour operator. The big issue and the priority is that the 7,500 travelers who are in our country will return to Germany, something that has already been initiated and of course we are interested in absorbing any mid-term consequences. The data at the moment show that this collapse will not create a problem in the overall tourist traffic to our country.

In any case, we are here as a ministry and as EOT to intervene if and where necessary, to minimize any loss related to Greek tourism”.