Greece: development and economic prospects of the main tourism markets

According to a report by the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (INΣETE), tourist flows from abroad are expected to be in an upward trend in 2024, the pace of which was set in 2023.

According to experts, the course of incoming tourism will again depend on maintaining and further strengthening the international competitiveness of the Greek tourism product. The prerequisite for achieving this is a targeted strategy, which ΣΕΤΕ has identified in five main areas, which include: infrastructure development, investment and competitiveness, good governance, expanding the labor market and strengthening stability.

“Changes in the global economy and especially in the main countries of origin of our visitors have a direct impact on tourism demand. Constant monitoring of macroeconomic events and prospects is considered necessary for timely diagnosis of changes and implementation of corrective actions, – Ilias Kikilias, General Director of INSETE, commented on the report. “Competitiveness, resilience, adaptation are key factors for Greek tourism to maintain its strong position in the global tourism market in an unstable and rapidly changing environment.” Regarding the development and economic prospects of some of the main inbound tourism markets in Greece, the following are briefly mentioned:

Eurozone
Greece received about 7.7 billion euros from inbound tourism from eurozone countries in 2019 (44% of the total). Receipts from the eurozone for the first ten months of 2023 amounted to €8.8 billion, an increase of +17% compared to the corresponding ten months of 2019, while international air arrivals from eurozone airports for the whole of 2023 showed an increase of 13.7% on compared to 2019. Eurozone GDP is estimated to grow by 0.7% in 2024 (IMF: 1.2%), up from 0.4% in 2023 (IMF: 0.7%). Private travel demand is expected to increase by 0.3% in 2024, up from 0.2% in 2023.

Germany
Greece received about 3 billion euros from inbound tourism from Germany in 2019 (16.7% of the total). Receipts from Germany in the first ten months of 2023 amounted to €2.9 billion, up +17% on the corresponding ten months in 2019, while international air arrivals from German airports for the whole of 2023 showed an increase of 8.5% on compared to 2019. Despite the very large restructuring that is taking place in Germany in an unfavorable geopolitical and economic situation, its GDP is expected to recover slightly by 0.1% in 2024 (IMF: 0.9%) versus a fall of 0.3% in 2023 (IMF : -0.5%). Private travel demand is expected to decline by 0.3% in 2024 (compared to -1.1% in 2023).

France
Greece received about 1.1 billion euros from inbound tourism from France in 2019 (6.2% of the total). Receipts from France in the first ten months of 2023 amounted to €1.1 billion, up 29% on the corresponding ten months in 2019, while international air arrivals from French airports for the whole of 2023 showed an increase of 20.5% compared Happy 2019. French GDP growth is expected to be 0.8% in 2024 (IMF: 1.3%) versus 0.6% in 2023 (IMF: 1.3%). Private travel demand is expected to increase by 0.6% in 2024, up from 0.5% in 2023.

Italy
Greece received approximately €1.0 billion from inbound tourism from Italy in 2019 (5.6% of the total). International air arrivals from Italian airports for the whole of 2023 showed an increase of 16.0% compared to 2019. Italy’s GDP growth is expected to be 0.8% in 2024 (IMF: 0.7%) versus 0.5% in 2023 (IMF: 0.7%). Private travel demand is expected to increase by 1.1% in 2024, up from 1.2% in 2023.

Great Britain
Greece received approximately €2.6 billion from inbound tourism from the United Kingdom in 2019 (14.5% of the total). Receipts from the United Kingdom for the first ten months of 2023 amounted to €2.5 billion, up 32% on the corresponding ten months in 2019, while international flights from UK airports for the whole of 2023 showed an increase of 24.4% on compared to the same period in 2019. After revised UK data showed a faster recovery following the lifting of COVID-19 measures, UK GDP is expected to grow by 0.4% in 2024 (IMF: 0.6%) from 0 .5% in 2023 (IMF). Private travel demand is expected to increase by 0.2% in 2024, up from 0.3% in 2023.

USA
In 2019, Greece received about 1.2 billion euros from inbound tourism from the United States (6.7% of the total). Receipts from the US for the first ten months of 2023 amounted to €1.1 billion, an increase of 7% compared to the corresponding ten months of 2019. Expected US GDP growth is expected to decline to 0.8% in 2024 (IMF: 1.5%) from 2.0% in 2023 (IMF: 2.1%). Private travel demand is expected to increase 1.5% in 2024, up from 2.0% in 2023.

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