April 26, 2024

Athens News

News in English from Greece

Greeks pack their bags to spend Easter outdoors

The government’s decision not to let the townspeople go to spend “Easter in the countryside” radically changed the plans of the residents, especially those who live in large urban centers. Now they have turned their attention to small trips, within the regional unit, to their place of residence.

According to GRTimes, interest, demand and occupancy rates for tourism properties are particularly high in some areas. “Reservations for Easter, from Good Friday to Easter Monday, are 80% on the Athenian Riviera,” Andreas Chios, President of the Panhellenic Association of Property Managers (PASYDA) told GRTimes.gr, “and will likely reach 100%.”

PASYDA manages 500 properties, villas and detached houses on the Athenian Riviera.

According to the expert, objects with 3-4 rooms, designed for 6-8 people, are in special demand. As explained by Mr. Chios, these are mainly families, because companies are renting a larger area of ​​real estate.

Prices from 80 euros to 1200 euros
As for the rental of real estate for Easter, as reported by GRTimes.gr, prices range from 80 to 100 euros in a detached house, for example, in Lagonisi, Anavyssos, Saronida, but not near the sea. They can reach from 1000 to 1200 euros / day for a villa with a pool. “Usually houses / villas with 3-4 rooms cost between 300 and 600 euros / night,” says Mr. Chios.

50% of bookings in Magnesia
Also of great interest are the mansions and villas in the Pelion area (on the east side). Reservations in Magnesia (short-term rentals) range from 40% to 50%, and prices on Easter days start from 80 euros and reach 300 euros, depending on the type of house and its capacity. Roughly the same picture is observed in the Peloponnese and mainly in the region of Corinth.

However, PASYDA President Chios notes the fact that property owners living in Athens cannot travel to the Peloponnese to rent out their property.

“We have informed Panayiotis Stampoulidis, Secretary General for Trade and Consumer Protection,” Mr. Chios told GRTimes.gr, noting that the Association receives many phone calls from property owners asking for information on this matter.

According to the information, not being officials, owners of short-term rentals of real estate, if they have a reservation for this property, will be able to enter the area with the registration number of the property and the corresponding reservation printed in order to hand over the keys to their clients.

Interest in Halkidiki, but …
There is enough interest in renting houses and villas in Halkidiki for Easter, but the demand is limited. “This is because movement is prohibited, restaurants are closed and no events are taking place,” Lakis Anotidis, owner of a property management company in Thessaloniki and Halkidiki, told GRTimes.gr.

He explains that their customers are on standby this season and are wary of official announcements about what will apply to travel, vaccinations, tests, etc. “We, for our part, are giving prices at least 30% lower than in other years, ”says Mr Anotidis, adding that much of the world is“ cautious ”.

Limited interest in Easter is shown by foreigners from the Balkans and mainly from Serbia. As a reminder, citizens of the EU countries, the Schengen Agreement, Great Britain, the USA, the United Arab Emirates, Serbia, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand, Rwanda, Russia and Singapore enter Greece without a 7-day quarantine.

At the same time, the requirements for travelers are as follows: citizens must present a negative laboratory test for COVID-19 by PCR at the entrance to the country, made within 72 hours before arriving in Greece. Or, in case of completion of the coronavirus vaccination, present a certificate of vaccination in English issued by a government agency, provided that fourteen (14) days have passed since the completion of vaccination.





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