Covid-19: SETE Chief Lists Requirements for Hotel Reopenings in Greece

Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) President Yiannis Retsos on Wednesday referred to necessary requirements for Greek hotels and seasonal resorts to open and operate following their temporary closure due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

Underlining that he sees Greece’s hotel and resorts opening after May 31, Retsos posted on LinkedIn the actions that should be taken for the tourism sector until that time as well as after:

– protocols for the operation of transport and tourism businesses must be announced, which will be “realistic, applicable and sustainable”,
– VAT rates must be slashed for the whole tourism sector, in order to gain a portion of the international tourism market,
– employment must be subsidized, so that as many jobs as possible can be maintained and so that a new mentality of “subsidized unemployed workers” is not created.

“We are passing through the awkward interim between inaction and inactivity of businesses and employees and the preparation for a restart… The completely successful management of the situation by the state, to date, in terms of healthcare and measures, can’t stop here. Now is the time, more urgent than ever, to mark the next day and prove how realistic and fast the return to economic normalcy can be,” he said in his post.

Concluding his post, Retsos said: “The tourism market expects positive initiatives and will support the logic of burden sharing and be present in the effort for the next day”.

Greek Tourism Minister Harry Theoharis recently said that the suspension of operation of seasonal hotels in Greece will most likely be extended beyond April 30.

According to the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (HCH), the total estimated loss in turnover for Greece’s hotels due to Covid-19 has been estimated at 4.46 billion euros.