Minister of Tourism: Tourism breathes life to SMEs

“Tourism feeds the entire Greek economy. It feeds the average Greek business and, therefore, the average Greek family. All this effort that we have made – all these months – in order to have the measurable results we see today, is collective”, noted the Minister of Tourism Vassilis Kikilias at the meeting of the Board of the Athens Chamber of Commerce.

The Minister of Tourism highlighted the direct interconnection of the tourism product with all sectors of economic activity – the primary sector, health stores, the commercial world – as well as the development impetus it gives to local communities, with the implementation of basic infrastructure projects and attracting significant investments.

“Nothing happened automatically”, Mr. Kikilias pointed out, emphasizing the importance of the strategic choices of the Ministry of Tourism and the Government, as a whole, for extending the tourist season and strengthening new destinations throughout the territory.

Tour operators

“The data from the biggest tour operators abroad are breaking records for this year. And I’m referring to the tourist flows we already have: 500,000 travelers with direct flights from the US, 3 million European tourists from TUI, a 40% increase from Air France and Transavia, our country’s number one destination for France, the number one destination for Greece in road tourism for Romanians, one in two Serbs who will travel abroad this year choose Greece, flows also greatly increased from Israel, the German airlines  Condor back in Athens after 25 years, from 15% to 45% increase in bookings from Easy Jet, Jet2, British Airways and Ryanair “, he stated characteristically.

Especially for the center of Athens, the Minister of Tourism stressed the need for a balanced development of the tourism product with other economic activities, which will contribute positively to upgrading the image of the city as a whole, but also the well-being of its inhabitants.

“Tourism is a holistic product. We need to strike the right balance between the residents, the shops, our visitors, but also the infrastructure that may be missing from the city center or in need of improvement. I am glad that shopkeepers from the historic center of Athens come and tell me that they have never seen their tables so full at such a time. I feel satisfied to see tourists fill the main streets of the city and consume. The tourist product gives added value to our city and that is why it is important to preserve its quality”, he stressed.

The tourism industry

The Minister of Tourism praised the work and contribution of the Athens Chamber of Commerce during the difficult years of the pandemic and referred to the challenges for the tourism industry in the post-Covid era.

“It was a great honor and responsibility for me to lead the overall effort at the Ministry of Health in the face of the greatest health crisis of the last 100 years. And it was precisely this successful management, which – first and foremost – protected hundreds of thousands of human lives, while in terms of tourism, allowed us to achieve the rebranding of our country abroad, making Greece one of the safest destinations for foreign travelers “, he underlined.

Finally, referring to the unstable environment that is forming at the economic and geopolitical level internationally, Mr. Kikilias underlined the apparent support of the Greek Government to households and businesses with a total of 44 billion euros, throughout the pandemic, but also the additional € 6.5 billion support to alleviate the effects of the impending energy crisis. At the same time, he spoke about the political choice of the Government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis to continue to reduce taxes and contributions, institutionalizing interventions with a purely social sign.

“We are here to join forces. At a difficult time, you – for your part – supported the Greek economy. And we – from our side – are here to support you. We did it from the first moment. And we will continue to do so for as long as necessary. This is because the effort is neither governmental, nor partisan, nor does it operate with exclusions. The effort is common and concerns all of us “, concluded the Minister of Tourism.