Greek Hotel Prices Soar This August

The island of Mykonos leads hotel price increases this month, data shows.

Despite the economic crisis, hotels on some Greek tourism destinations have significantly increased their prices this month compared to the same period last year, according to recent data provided by the Research Institute for Tourism (ITEP).

Having processed data from online hotel search engine Trivago, ITEP understands that this month is “the most expensive August” of the last three years.

The average online hotel rate for a double room in Greece this month stands at 131 euros, compared to 119 euros last year. This is a 10 percent increase compared to August 2012.

Mykonos is on the top of the list as hotels on the island have increased their prices by 43.1 percent. The increase was even higher (49.3 percent) last year.

Santorini is next with hotels in Imerovigli leading the way with a price increase this month by 39.5 percent, followed by hotels in Firostefani (37.4 percent increase) and Fira (26.2 percent increase).

The top 10 list of destinations that have high hotel prices this month include Spetses (24.1 percent increase), Hanioti in Halkidiki (23.3 percent), Elounda on Crete (17.1 percent), Oia on Santorini (14 percent), Rethymno on Crete (11.6 percent) and Kos Town (3.7 percent).

On the other hand, prices have dropped in hotels located on Rhodes (-0.9 percent), Hersonissos on Crete (-8.2 percent), Heraklion on Crete (-11.7 percent) and Corfu Town (-17.3 percent).

International arrivals on the up

In regards to international arrivals to Greece, ITEP said that compared to last year, they increased by 13.6 percent during the first half of 2013, while a 12.1 percent increase was recorded for the January-July period.