Greek PM: New Unique Experiences Key to Extending Tourist Season

Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaking at the “EU Tourism: Resilience in the Era of the Climate Crisis” forum on Rhodes. Photo source: Press Office of the Prime Minister

Extending the tourism season is one of Greece’s biggest challenges, said Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during the opening this week of the “EU Tourism: Resilience in the Era of the Climate Crisis” forum held on Rhodes.

Addressing the event, which was organized by HOTREC with the support of the South Aegean Region and included the participation of the country’s travel and tourism bodies, Mitsotakis underlined the need to develop a new model of tourism that focuses on sustainability particularly in view of an accelerating climate change and its imminent impact.

In this direction, Mitsotakis also stressed the importance of tapping into Greece’s cultural wealth to create special interest tourism products which will contribute to the extension of the tourism season.

“Extending the season means you spread tourists out over more months. Hotels work for eight or nine months instead of six. The same is true for restaurants and all service providers,” said Mitsotakis, adding that efforts are being made to create unique experiences that would attract tourists to Greece all year round and help ease congestion during peak months.

“I can tell you that in Greece, more of this is happening. The season is starting earlier, it’s finishing later,” he said.

“Greece is already attracting more than 30-32 million visitors a year. Again, it’s not about the numbers. At the end of the day, it’s about how much people spend in Greece. You could envision a future where you have fewer tourists spending more, and maybe it would be economically, certainly environmentally, better off,” he said.

Photo source: Press Office of the Prime Minister

As part of efforts to extend the season, Mitsotakis said developing new experiences was key. “Not enough people come to Greece for what Greece has to offer culturally. Most people come for the beach and for the summer experience. We can do much more in terms of developing our cultural heritage and connecting it to our tourism product by offering integrated experiences. If tourism is about unique experiences, there is a lot Greece can do,” he said.

In this direction he went on to add that Greece can do more in terms of introducing the world to the country’s special interest forms of tourism.

Lastly, looking ahead, Mitsotakis said he envisions travelers who visit or who plan to visit Greece to think of the country “as the best destination in the world”.

During the “EU Tourism: Resilience in the Climate Crisis Era” forum, European tourism bodies signed a joint declaration pledging to take actions to address arising challenges. The declaration was signed by  Airports Council International Europe (ACI Europe), Airlines for Europe (A4E), Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators’ Association (ECTAA), European Exhibition Industry Alliance (EEIA), European Regions Airline Association (ERA), HOTREC, IAAPA (the global association for the attractions industry), IRU (the world road transport organization representing buses, coaches, trucks, and taxis) and the European Federation of Rural Tourism (Ruraltour).