Study: Greece Still Attractive Tourist Destination Despite Covid-19

Photo: GTP

Potential travelers appear to be eager to visit Greece in the next three months despite the Covid-19 crisis, according to a study on attitudes and intentions regarding international leisure trips jointly carried out by Athens-based tourism marketing company Mindhaus and Pollfish research.

“In travelers’ minds, Greece has those key elements that make it the most attractive destination in the Mediterranean for the next quarter, especially for specific market segments, and is among the most attractive in the medium term, which is extremely useful in strategy and marketing for the recovery phase,” said Theofilos Kyratsoulis, general manager Mindhaus.

More specifically, according to a study carried out on May 13-14 on a sample of 2,750 respondents from some of Greece’s top source markets – the US, UK, Germany, France and Italy – two in three respondents said they were eager to restart international travel placing high priority on safety, relaxation and recreation.

The top factors influencing their plans were the discovery of a coronavirus vaccine (11.9 percent), the implementation of health and safety protocols (11.8 percent), destinations with the most effective crisis management (11.7 percent), the complete freedom of travel (11.7 percent), and the availability of a quick Covid-19 test (11.7 percent).

In terms of needs, travelers in the post-Covid era are looking for a sense of safety (16.3 percent), relaxation and carefree holidays (13.3 percent), fun (11.3 percent), and cheap prices (10.7 percent).

The study also found that nationals from Germany (62 percent), France (55 percent), and the UK (55 percent) were readier to travel compared to other markets as the coronavirus pandemic subsides.

Indicatively, of those polled, 28.1 percent said they would be planning their dream trip once travel restrictions ease.

“Although the situation for the next quarter appears to be generally unfavorable, we see that two in three travelers really want to start their leisure trips abroad as soon as travel restrictions are lifted and will not wait for a vaccine to be discovered,” added Kyratsoulis.