Greece Gains Ground with Canadians, Australians in 2016-2018

Photo: GTP

Canada, Australia, Denmark, the US and Poland were the top source markets for Greece over the 2016-2018 period, recording the highest rises in the number of arrivals, overnights and revenue, according to a study released this week by SETE Intelligence (INSETE), the research arm of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE).

According to the study titled “An X-ray of Greece’s 26 Biggest Inbound Tourism Markets 2016-2018”, the number of arrivals from Canada increased by 126 percent, night stays by 158 percent  and revenue by 158. Australia follows with a 91 percent rise in arrivals, overnights up by 105 percent and revenue by 99 percent.

Arrivals from  Denmark grew by 59 percent, overnights by 59 percent, and revenue by 61 percent. The number of US travelers increased by 41 percent, with a 43 percent rise in stays and a 43 percent increase in revenue. And lastly, Poland recorded a 43 percent rise, with overnights up by 19 percent and revenue by 37 percent.

INSETE analysts examined Greece’s 26 largest source markets which accounted for 92 percent of total tourism revenue for 2018.

The Acropolis, © GTP

Overall, according to the study, inbound tourism in 2016-2018 grew by 21 percent in terms of arrivals, 19 percent for overnight stays and by 23 percent in revenue, continuing the upward trend that started in 2012.

More specifically, arrivals went from 24.8 million in 2016 to 30.1 million in 2018; overnight stays reached 227.0 million in 2018 from 190.4 million in 2016; and revenue came to 15.7 billion euros in 2018 from 12.7 billion euros in 2016.

SETE analysts found that all source markets recorded growth in the 2016-2018 period apart from Russia with decreased arrivals by 13 percent, overnight stays down by 15 percent and revenue by 22 percent.

Photo Source: @Thessaloniki Travel

Arrivals from Northern Macedonia also declined by 31 percent, overnight stays by 29 percent, and revenue by 16 percent. The number of travelers from Norway also waned, down by 5 percent, overnight stays by 2 percent, and revenue by 8 percent.

In the same period, visitors from Cyprus, Turkey and the UK stayed for fewer nights, down by 14 percent, 9 percent, and 3 percent, respectively.

Over 2016-2018, the average duration of stay declined by 1.8 percent to 7,5 days in 2018.

Spending per person, however, increased by 1.1 percent to 519.6 euros in 2018 with average daily expenditure up by 3.0 percent to 69.0 euros in 2018.

The US, Italy and North Macedonia recorded rises in all three indicators: duration of stay, spending and daily expenditure.