Report: Greek Tourism Sees Robust Recovery in 2023 Compared to pre-Covid Levels

Photo source: Visit Greece

Greece in 2023 saw a robust tourism recovery in the post-Covid era, compared to the rest of the world, shows data released by INSETE, the research body of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE).

According to INSETE’s special edition on Greek tourism for the year 2023, which includes data on international arrivals, travel receipts, domestic tourism, accommodation, employment and quality indicators, Greece recorded a very strong performance last year.

INSETE’s data shows that last year Greece’s international arrivals and travel receipts were up by 4 percent and 12 percent respectively compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Considering that on a global level, international tourist arrivals and travel receipts did not fully recover in 2023 and were still down by 12 percent and 7 percent respectively compared to 2019, Greek tourism had a particularly dynamic course by comparison.

2023: Greece saw 32.7 million tourists, €20.4 million in revenue

International tourist arrivals by region. Source: UN Tourism (formerly known as UNWTO) – Data for Greece: 2021: -53% / 2022: -11% / 2023: +4% – Source: INSETE

Moreover, compared to 2022, last year inbound tourism traffic in Greece increased by 17.6 percent and amounted to some 32.7 million travelers, compared to 27.8 million in 2022. Travel receipts last year showed an increase of 15.7 percent compared to 2022 and amounted to 20,460 million euros.

According to INSETE, having surpassed Greece’s 2019 tourism figures, 2023 is now the new year of reference for the performance of Greek tourism.

The main findings of INSETE’s report are the following:

International arrivals

By air: In 2023, 24.1 million international air arrivals were recorded, showing an increase of 2.5 million (+11.8 percent) compared to 2022.
Significant growth in arrivals were recorded at Athens and Thessaloniki airports, up by 27.4 percent and 19.4 percent respectively for 2023 compared to 2022. Both airports showed impressive growth, especially in the first quarter of 2023, compared to Q1 2022, when travel restrictions due to Covid-19 were still in place.

By road: International road arrivals reached 10.4 million, compared to 8.0 million in the January-December 2022 period, showing a significant increase of 2.4 million (up by 30.4 percent), although not a full recovery compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Cruise and ferry arrivals from the Adriatic: 2023 is considered a record year for cruise tourism in Greece, surpassing all previous numbers in total passenger arrivals.
Total cruise ship arrivals in 49 Greek ports reached 5,230 and the number of passengers reached 7 million, showing an increase of 450 ship arrivals (up by 9 percent) and an increase of 2.4 million passengers (up by 51 percent) compared to 2022.
Passenger traffic from the Adriatic is estimated to have increased by 11.6 percent in 2023 compared to 2022 while the estimate for the number of passengers is 1.3 million compared to 1.2 million in 2022.

Piraeus port. Photo source: Piraeus Port Authority.

Revenue & average expenditure per person

Travel receipts in 2023 showed an increase of 15.7 percent compared to 2022 and amounted to some 20.4 million euros.
According to INSETE, the development is due to the increase in receipts from residents of European Union countries by 11.5 percent, which amounted to some 11.15 million euros, as well as receipts from residents of countries outside the European Union by 18.5 percent, which amounted to around 8.59 million euros.
In particular, receipts from Germany increased by 9.5 percent to some 3.56 million euros, while receipts from France increased by 11.6 percent to some 1.42 million euros.
From countries outside the EU-27, receipts from the United Kingdom increased by 5.8 percent (3.3 million euros) and receipts from the United States increased by 14 percent (1.36 million euros). The average expenditure per person dropped by 2.7 percent in 2023 to 603 euros compared to 620 euros in 2022.

Domestic tourism

In the January-December 2023 period, 9 million domestic air arrivals were recorded compared to 7.6 million in 2022, showing an increase of 1.4 million (up by 18.5 percent).
In terms of coastal shipping traffic (ferry passengers), the estimate for the number of passengers is 18.7 million compared to 17.5 million in 2022, marking an increase of 6.7 percent.

Hotel performance

Hotel revenues reached 10.6 billion euros in 2023, up by 22.5 percent compared to 2022, when total turnover was 8.6 billion euros.
According to the data, the increase was greater in seasonal hotels (+27 percent) and units of the 4- and 5-star categories ( up by 24 percent) and less in hotels open all year round (up by 9 percent) and of 1- to 3-star categories (up by 19 percent).
As the year before, Greek hotels in 2023 invested 7 percent of their turnover, i.e. 761 million euros compared to 621 million euros in 2022.
The quality rating for Greek hotels in 2023 remained high (GRI hotel satisfaction index was 87 percent and the Net Promoter Score was 51) and increased compared to 2022 (from 86 percent and 50 respectively).

Short-term rentals

According to data by Transparent, the maximum number of offered short-term rental properties was 212,000 with 939,000 beds in July and the smallest 171,000 accommodations with 780,000 beds in January. The corresponding figures in 2022 were 195,000 accommodations and 875,000 beds in July and 151,000 accommodations and 681,000 beds in January.

Employment

At the peak of Greece’s tourism season (Q3) in 2023, employment in accommodation and food & beverage (F&B) services (445,000) remained at the levels of 2022 based on data from the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT).