Sector revenues should reach 20 billion euros in 2022, a record. But the increase in the number of visitors worries the authorities.
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After a summer of all records in Greece, the tourism sector displays its satisfaction. The attendance should exceed that of 2019 -year already considered exceptional -, when 33 million people had visited the country, more than three times the population of it.
The National Bank of Greece also provides for revenues of 20 billion euros in 2022, against 18.2 billion three years ago. “How not to be satisfied with this season?, Indicates the Minister of Tourism, Vassilis Kikilias to the world. In September and October, tourist flows remain very important. Our goal has always been to extend the period to allow the sector of benefit from revenues throughout the year. “
Behind this success, the concerns of the Greeks in the face of hypertourism and the overlap of urban centers grow. The photo of the famous ship beach, on the island of Zante, tainted by garbage cans raised by tourists, has toured social networks. On the island of Kythnos, the Koutsikos family notes that in August, “at night, after 10 pm, there are often water cuts because of the large number of visitors”.
“My rent increased by 30 % in four years”
On the tourist island of Santorini, during each school year, teachers, nurses and young people in medicine cannot find accommodation. “Some of my colleagues had to sleep in tents or in their car for days. I ended up welcoming two at home. This is a problem that has been going on for years, without being resolved,” said Sakis Agorastos, a teacher, on the public television channel Ert.
Also in the capital, the multiplication of seasonal rentals hunts residents of tourist areas. Nikos Dragoumis, in his forties, had to leave his apartment in the Athenian district of Koukaki, at the foot of the Acropolis, where more than 700 Airbnb dwellings according to the company Airdna. “I had been living there for fifteen years. My rent increased by 30 % in four years. This year, in June, my owner finally announced that he preferred to transform his accommodation into Airbnb, and I am Party to settle in the suburbs, “explains the official.
Faced with the increase in real estate prices, Vassilis Kikilias believes that everything does not depend on the government: “town halls and regions must take the initiative to develop housing for civil servants appointed to the islands, and The private sector must be able to accommodate their employees and seasonal workers in worthy conditions. “
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