Greek Hoteliers Offer Hundreds of Rooms in Fire-hit Areas

Greek hoteliers are making available hundreds of rooms as accommodation for victims of the wildfires that have been devastating Greece over the last week.

The Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (HCH) in collaboration with the government announced that Attica residents impacted by the fires can call the National Public Health Organization on 1135 and be directed to hotels for accommodation with costs covered by the state until they regain access to their homes.

Most of the rooms – currently numbering 800 – have been made available in Attica, Evia, and the Peloponnese. Hoteliers who provide rooms will be compensated by the government.

Speaking to SKAI TV, Hellenic Hoteliers Federation (POX) President Grigoris Tasios expressed the support of hotel owners to those impacted by the fires. He added that following the initiative of HCH President Alexandros Vassilikos, POX members had made available over 500 rooms to accommodate victims of the unprecedented fires.

Besides providing hotel rooms for accommodation, EODY and Civil Protection have also announced psychological support for the affected.

In the meantime, Greek tourism stakeholders are expressing serious concerns that the ongoing forest fires may hurt August bookings and arrivals, delivering yet another blow to the country’s already ailing sector due to Covid-19.

Tourism professionals have pinned their hopes of recovery on August after July showed slight signs of improvement. According to data by INSETE, the Greek Tourism Confederation’s (SETE) research body, 817,000 seats on incoming flights have been booked for August 2-8; 835,000 for August 9-15; and 841,000 for August 16-22.