Tourist Numbers from Albania to Greece Mark Impressive Rise

Igoumenitsa, Epirus. Photo source: Igoumenitsa Port Authority (olig.gr)

Albania is among the top traveler markets for Northern Greece, holding the lead in three Greek regions for 2018, according to a sectoral report released by INSETE, the Greek Tourism Confederation’s (SETE) research body.

According to the report, Albanian holidaymakers outnumbered all other nationalities in 2018 in three out of 13 Greek regions, namely those of Epirus, Western Greece and Western Macedonia.

Kastoria, Western Macedonia.

More specifically, the number of visits by Albanian travelers increased by 16.2 percent in 2018 to 1,121,472, with the number of visitors from the neighboring country up by 19 percent in 2018 to 986.6 thousand visitors against 828.7 thousand in 2017.

The INSETE study, examining travel trends based on central bank data, reveals that Albanian tourists were ranked 10^th in terms of number of visits overcoming the Serbs and the Turks, which dropped in 2017.

A total of 349,000 Albanian travelers visited Western Macedonia, holding the lead in the region, followed by Bulgaria (64,000) and Germany (38,000). A total of 231,000 visited Epirus, followed by the Germans (83,000), and the Italians (63,000).

In Western Greece, of the 699,000 visitors in 2018, 93,000 were from Albania, followed by German visitors (71,000) and 44,000 from France.

According to INSETE data, Albanian travelers stay less with 173,000 overnight stays in Western Macedonia, 223,000 in Western Greece, and 316,000 in Epirus.

On the upside, spending by Albanian tourists is relatively high compared to other markets with revenues in Western Macedonia at 10 million euros, 29 million euros in Western Greece, and 40 million euros in Epirus.