Greek Hoteliers Say Flexibility Key to Dealing with Challenges

Claiming a larger piece of the tourism pie and meeting industry challenges with flexibility are top priorities for Greek hoteliers, who held their annual general assembly this week at the Electra Metropolis in Athens.

“Greece has the potential to gain a greater share in tourism and to support society even more. This is evident in the demand for Greece in major foreign markets, despite the general consumer climate caused by the cost of energy and high inflation,” said  Hellenic Hoteliers Federation (POX) President Grigoris Tasios addressing the general assembly event also attended by Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias, Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) President Yiannis Retsos, and Hellenic Chamber of Hotels President Alexandros Vassilikos.

Tasios went on to add that 2022 set the pace for an even better year ahead, adding however that challenges remain. A major issue for hoteliers, he said, is the growing operational costs which is affecting hoteliers globally.

“Despite the challenges,” Tasios said, “we’re expecting a good year based on prebooking data and revenues to reach 2019 levels at least”.

“Most importantly, there will be great interest in Greece over the next few years. We’ve achieved an average increase of 10 to 12 percent in the package deals in 2023 and already major tour operators are requesting the same prices for 2024 as well, which means that Greece is ‘selling’,” said Tasios, adding that the time was right to take advantage of this potential.

Family photo from POX’s general assembly. Photo source: POX.

Lastly, Tasios referred to the efforts being made by POX to ensure fair market conditions. Among others, he highlighted the association’s proposal for the regulation of short-term rentals and added that its calls for the employment of third country national to meet staffing needs had been met.