‘It is too early to assess the imprint of the crisis in Greek tourism’ – Over 700,000 lost airline seats

“It is still too early to assess the impact of the current crisis on Greek tourism as a whole,” Christina Tetradi, vice-president of the Hotel Chamber of Greece, told APE-MPE. overall result for Greek tourism. “As long as the war lasts, no estimates can be made,” he added.

Referring to the mobility of bookings for Greece this year, Ms. Tetradi notes that there may be no freezing of bookings from other markets of interest, however there is no booking rate of previous weeks. Questions for 2022 will be the markets of Poland and Romania, according to Ms. Tetradi, as it remains unknown whether households will now be able to travel financially after the refugee flows of Ukrainians there.

Prospective travelers are holding a waiting position in view of the new tourist year

Remaining in the shadows of this year, in the shadow of developments in Ukraine, the representatives of ECTAA, the largest European organized tourism agency representing the associations of tourist offices and tour operators in Europe, in a recent meeting stated that so far no unregistered travel documents are recorded. , but the flow of reservations has been stopped, with travelers keeping a waiting attitude. At the same time, there were strong concerns about the impact of rising fuel costs, inflation and the impact these factors will have on travelers’ travel budgets.

Important markets for Greek tourism Russia and Ukraine – Up to 830,000 lost airline seats this year for Greece from Russia Ukraine, Belarus

In the meantime, from 600,000 to 830,000 are estimated the losses of air seats that were planned for this year from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus for Greece, after the war in Ukraine, according to Greek tourism agencies. Speaking to APE-MPE, both the president of the federation of travel agents, “Fedhatta” Lyssandros Tsilidis, as well as the general secretary of the Hotel Owners Association of Heraklion and the CEO of Aldemar Resorts, Alexandros Angeloun Ro, that are particularly important for the Greek tourism economy.

In the past, according to Mr. Angelopoulos, Russian visitors to Greece had reached 1.3 million, while from Ukraine last year reached 130,000 visitors to Greece, according to Mr. Tsilidis. In fact, 50% of the visitors from the two countries were absorbed by Crete, with all that this implies for the economy of the island. Mr. Tsilidis even reminds that the Ukrainians come to Greece without a visa, while at the end of March this year the green light was expected from Russia for charter flights to Greece.

This year, according to the president of “Fedhatta”, at least 230,000 air seats and more than 600,000 seats from Russia were planned for Greece from Ukraine. At this point, Alexandros Angelopoulos explains that the losses of tourists to Greece, from Russia and Ukraine, should also include those from Belarus. After that, he estimates that the losses for Greece from these markets will range from 600,000 to 700,000 arrivals, numbers that are particularly important for Greek tourism, as he explains.

A blow to agencies and hotels cooperating with Russia and Ukraine

In the meantime, the number of agencies that have links to Russia and Ukraine, with all that implies with their viability, is not insignificant. As Mr. Tsilidis explains, these agencies are exclusive to these markets and it is not easy to switch to other markets of interest. From the point of view of hotels, Mr. Angelopoulos explains that it is difficult to equate for hotels that have exposure in the Russian market.

Citing the group’s hotels as an example, he notes that one of them, located in Skafidia in the prefecture of Ilia, owes 40% of its turnover to customers from Russia and Ukraine. Given the impossibility of having alternative airline seats in the Peloponnese it is difficult to fill the gaps from other markets. For Crete, however, where the group is present, the gaps are easier to fill due to the alternatives in the air networks, as he emphasizes.

Unbearable energy costs for hotels-Energy is the second most expensive after work.

In any case, what seems unbearable for the hotels is the energy cost, with Mr. Angelopoulos asking for immediate measures. “We offer tourist packages with 2019 prices and even discounts, at a time when in 2022 we have a surge in energy costs,” he says. A particularly aggravating landscape, to which are added increases in already food (meat and cereals) but also raw materials (eg wood), coming from Russia. The mixture, he emphasizes, is explosive and the help of the financial staff should be immediate and clear in the new scenario. At this point, Mr. Angelopoulos reminds that energy is the second in cost after labor. On the same issue, the vice president of the FDI notes that the energy NSRF has not even been announced yet, through the funds of the recovery fund, which if it happened would be a lifeline for the hotels, as she says.

Source: AMPE