Greece to Open All Year Round for Tourists

After being named Europe’s top destination for 2021 at the World Travel Awards, Greece has announced it will not only focus on the peak summer season but will also be ready and willing to welcome international visitors all year round. 

Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias made the announcement in a recent interview with CNN, during his time at the international tourism trade fair at the World Travel Market (WTM), in London.

According to the Minister, Greece’s tourism board is working hard to “win over” every traveller, offering a new tourist experience, and at the same time promoting new destinations including more untouched islands, both small and large, the mainland, and city breaks.

Insights Greece - Greece to Open All Year Round for Tourists
Greece proves it’s more than just a summer destination

Minister Kikilias said, “Tourism is the locomotive of the Greek economy, something that proves again this year, in the midst of a pandemic, and brings new jobs that we aspire to be of better quality and better paid, enable through the 320 million euros of the RRF of the Ministry of Tourism for infrastructure, ports, marinas, upgrading of hotel units, for digitization, green development, and a sustainable system of the sustainable tourism product.”

The Minister stressed there is more to Greece than just a few popular islands. “It doesn’t always have to be to the two or three branded places that people discovered in the 50s and the 60s,” he said, adding that Greece has many beautiful destinations that he believes will appeal to tourists from the UK, the US, France and beyond.

Concerning infrastructure in specific popular destinations including Santorini, Mykonos, and Rhodes to name a few, Kikilias said that Greece has 320 million euros from the Recovery and Resiliance Fund (RRF) to improve its infrastructure and build new infrastructure where it’s needed.

During his time at WTM London Minister Kikilas also met with a range of international tour operators, travel agents, and airline companies from Great Britain, the USA, and France and signed a number of new deals for 2022.  

And although the country will be open to tourists all year round, the official tourist season in Greece will commence in early spring (March-April). And with high volumes of bookings already taking place, 2022 is expected to be a very successful year for Greece’s tourism industry.