South Aegean Islands: Early Bookings for Summer 2024 Show Double-digit Increase

Photo source: Visit Greece

The islands of the Cyclades and Dodecanese are expecting a particularly good tourism season this year as pre-bookings for summer 2024 are already seeing double-digit growth, according to South Aegean Region Governor George Hatzimarkos.

Speaking during a recent press event in Athens, Hatzimarkos said that flight bookings for this summer are moving at a double-digit rate of 10 percent to 14 percent at the five main airports ( Rhodes, Mykonos, Santorini, Kos and Karpathos) of the South Aegean, with the markets of the UK and Germany in the lead.

The governor added that early hotel bookings on islands of the South Aegean are already up by some 20 percent.

“We begin every year aiming to be the best we can, offer the best services, the best product, the best experience,” Hatzimarkos highlighted.

Region wants a percentage of climate resilience levy

South Aegean Region Governor George Hatzimarkos speaking during the press event. Photo © Greek Travel Pages

During the press event, Hatzimarkos referred to the recent decision of the South Aegean Regional Council to request 75 percent of the revenue collected from the newly introduced climate resilience levy charged on the region’s hotel guests.

It is reminded that the Greek Government in December 2023 passed a new law and introduced a new accommodation tax, known as the climate crisis resilience fee. Revenue collected from the tax is to be used to finance reconstruction projects.

Based on a hotel’s category, the levy ranges from 0.50 to four euros per night during the low season (November-February) and 1.50 to 10 euros during high season.

According to Hatzimarkos, 40 percent of the revenue that will be collected for the country will come from the islands of the South Aegean, since the largest percentage of five-star and four-star hotels are located in the Region.

Table showing the climate resilience levy charged on Greek hotels depending on their category. The charges have been increased significantly for the season running from March – October. The fees are per room per night. Source: GBR Consulting

More specifically, Hatzimarkos stressed that 36 percent of Greece’s 5-star hotels and 25 percent of the country’s 4-star hotels are located in the South Aegean Region.

“Most of the hotels that will see the highest charges of 10 and 7 euros per night are in our Region,” he stressed.

Therefore, the governor is calling for the 75 percent of the revenue collected from the South Aegean islands’ hotels to stay in the Region in order to “balance the lack of funding and implementation of major projects on the region’s 54 islands by the government”.

South Aegean Region Governor George Hatzimarkos made the comments to the media during the press conference for the upcoming EU tourism forum on Rhodes. An initiative of HOTREC, the umbrella association for Hotels, Restaurants, & Cafes in Europe, the “EU Tourism: Resilience in the Climate Crisis Era” forum will be held from April 8 to 9 and focus on how climate change affects European tourism.