Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias spoke about the extension of the tourist season, the travel revenues, which according to the provisional data of the Central Bank exceeded the initial target by 2.6 billion euros, the strategic agreements with major markets and also about the development projects brought about by the tourism upgrade, in an interview with radio station SKAI 100.3.
As he mentioned, in 2022 travel receipts from the very important markets of the United Kingdom, France and Germany increased by 21.8%, 16.4% and 10% respectively compared to 2019. The agreement with the American airlines for 63 direct flights/week from the USA to “El. Venizelos” International Airport with the result that until January 2023 American high spending travelers will visit Athens and other Greek destinations.
“For 2023 we already have 56 flights per week booked from the US – starting March 11th, with more to come – plus Canada with 2 flights, plus Australia and China which opened after the pandemic. Success story and Israel with flights every weekend. Hellenic Tourism Organization campaign 12 months a year for all mountainous, winter, alternative destinations and city breaks. This is a huge reform in the tourism industry. Digital booking, digital nomads, support for modern marketing tools, so that we can bring even more quality travelers,” said the Minister of Tourism.
Major infrastructure projects
With reference to infrastructure projects, Mr. Kikilias emphasized that now 8 out of 10 investments made in Greece are related to tourism and he emphasized that for the next 4 years an interministerial committee under the Presidency of the Government will be a cross-section with the aim of upgrading infrastructure projects, key projects for the sustainability of the tourism product and the growth of the country, with fast track procedures.
As an example, he mentioned the parking area for tourist buses, for which the Government, the Ministry of Tourism and the Municipality of Athens agree to create a parking lot on Syngrou Avenue where there is space available, so as to stop parking on Amalias Avenue, which creates a significant problem in the city traffic.
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