Hypertourism “drives away” tourists

Excessive guest numbers and inflated prices keep local and international tourists away from the popular islands during the summer months, while bookings rise significantly in September.

So, in July and August 2023, in such popular destinations as Mykonos and Santorini, a decrease in bookings by foreign tourists is recorded compared to last year. This trend is confirmed not only by hoteliers, but also by platforms like Airbnb. However, in Athens and other regions of mainland Greece, it increases significantly.

Hundreds of tourists flock during the summer months to Greece’s top destinations such as Mykonos and Santorini, resulting in, in addition to injecting liquidity into the local community, problems of overcrowding, mainly tourist attractions, the newspaper reported on Monday. ethnos.gr. According to representatives of local authorities, discomfort is noted even among Greek tourists who choose these destinations for their holidays.

Speaking on air open TV, the president of Mykonos restaurant owners, Yiannis Theoharis, said about 15,000 people were on the island in a matter of hours. The president of the Santorini Hotels Association, Antonis Iliopoulos, has quoted a figure of 25,000 tourists per day from one cruise ship.

For this reason, many tourists now choose September to travel to their favorite popular islands. It is characteristic that, based on the data, bookings in Athens in September increase by 73%, while in Mykonos by 12%, and in Santorini by 13%. According to the newspaper cathimeriniEuropean tourists are increasingly choosing destinations or periods of the year with less crowds as they seek better service, new experiences and lower prices. Indeed, according to many market experts, the prices for the most popular Greek islands are excessively high.

The average price per night in Rhodes and Crete this year is 214 euros, while in Corfu it is 188.5 euros, compared to 138.5 euros in French Nice. It should be noted that in Santorini the average price per night is 371.2 euros, while in Mykonos it is close to 700 euros!

As a result, July and August are likely to see fewer predicted arrivals compared to last year in popular Greek destinations such as Mykonos and Santorini. This trend is confirmed not only by hoteliers, but also by online platforms short term lease. In them, the number of bookings for July and August of this year has decreased compared to last summer.

According to data compiled by AirDNA, demand reflected in bookings made so far is down year-over-year in Mykonos (-15% in July and -9% in August) and Santorini (-3% in July and -6% in August). The choice of Crete (-3%), Corfu (-3%) and the Saronic Gulf region (Saronida, Anavyssos, Lagonisi) also decreased by 9% in July.

On the contrary, a significant increase of 22% in July and 31% in August was recorded by bookings in the center of Athens, reaching in absolute numbers 138,297 and 97,156 respectively. A positive trend is also observed in other areas of the Athenian Riviera, such as Glyfada (19% increase in bookings in August) and Vouliagmeni (34% increase in August). Short-term rental bookings in the Ermionida area (Porto Heli, Ermioni) recorded an increase of 16% in July and 17% in August.

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