Greek Tourism Minister Invites French Investors to Bet on Greece Now

A friendlier investor environment combined with growth-driven policies are the two key reasons cited by Greek Tourism Minister Harry Theoharis in Paris, on Wednesday, that make Greece an opportune investor choice.

Addressing the “Greece a Strategic Factor in Southeastern Europe: Trust is Reborn” forum organized by the French-Greek Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Theoharis underlined the importance of timing, which he said was ideal for investors to bet on Greece.

“As they say, half the secret to success is timing and now the timing is ideal to invest in Greece,” he told French entrepreneurs.

Theoharis went on to add that the growing demand for travel to Greece has not only created the need for new investments but for higher quality projects focused on sustainability as well as on education and training.

The minister underlined the importance the government has placed on the further development of tourism, which he said is a top priority and includes support measures such as tax breaks and incentives.

According to the minister, in the last four years, investors have poured in 5 billion euros in the hotel industry, expected to reach 6.5 billion euros in 2023 – half of which are in 4- and 5-star hotels.

Referring to the importance of France as a source market, Theoharis said tourism between the two countries was at its best citing 2019 figures. Last year, over 1.8 million French tourists visited Greece, an additional 300,000 against 2017 marking a 7-8 percent rise in the number of arrivals and a 14-15 percent increase in revenue compared to the previous year.

Overall, he said, tourism accounts for nearly 25 percent of the country’s exports, more than 10 percent of GDP from direct revenue generated by foreign exchange from incoming tourism, 25-30 percent in indirect revenue from domestic tourism and indirect effects of tourism.