Greece Road Arrivals Jump 17.5% in September, 14.5% in First Nine Months

Photo source: Visit Greece

Road tourism to Greece continued its strong performance in September as well as throughout the first nine months of the year, according to recent data from INSETE, the research institute of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE).

Greece saw a 17.5 percent increase in arrivals by road in September, according to the data, totaling 1.5 million visitors—an increase compared to the same month last year.

Including September, data for the first three quarters of 2024 shows a 14.5 percent year-on-year increase in road arrivals, reaching 10.3 million — 1.3 million more than the same period in 2023. Combined with the 22.6 million international air arrivals, Greece welcomed over 32 million visitors in the first nine months of 2024.

Road arrivals: First three quarters of 2024

Monthly increases in road arrivals were recorded throughout the first quarter of 2024. In January, Greece saw 460,000 arrivals by road, up 11.3 percent over January 2023. February followed with 359,000 arrivals, marking a 14.5 percent increase, and March saw 420,000 road arrivals, up by 10.8 percent.

In the second quarter, road arrivals varied month to month. April recorded a slight dip with an 8.5 percent decrease, totaling 516,000 arrivals. However, May rebounded with 770,000 arrivals — a 37.7 percent increase — while June reached 1.5 million arrivals, reflecting a 14.5 percent rise.

The third quarter saw significant increases at Greece’s borders. In July, road traffic rose to 2.3 million entries, up 13.9 percent over July 2023. August saw 2.5 million road entries, marking a 14.5 percent increase, while September recorded 1.5 million entries, up 17.5 percent.

Geographical distribution of road arrivals

The majority of road arrivals to Greece during the first nine months of the year were recorded at the Promahonas border crossing on the Greek-Bulgarian border, which saw the largest increase in absolute numbers. Specifically, this border checkpoint served 2.7 million arrivals, an increase of 248,000 compared to the same period last year, amounting to a 9.9 percent rise.

The Evzoni border crossing, situated on the Greek border with Northern Macedonia, was the second busiest entry point, recording 2.2 million arrivals during the first three quarters of 2024. This represents an increase of 190,000 arrivals, or 9.3 percent, compared to the same period a year earlier.

Following Evzoni was the Kipi border crossing on the Greek-Turkish border, welcoming 940,000 arrivals from January to September 2024. This marks an increase of 188,000, equating to a remarkable 25.1 percent rise.

At the Nymphaea and Ormenio crossings, also on the Greek-Bulgarian border, arrivals amounted to 722,000 (a 42.1 percent increase) and 614,000 (a 7.4 percent rise), respectively.

The Kakavia border crossing on the Greek-Albanian border registered 498,000 arrivals, reflecting a 3.1 percent increase, while the Niki border station on the Greek-Northern Macedonia border recorded 418,000 arrivals, representing a 10.7 percent rise compared to the first nine months of 2023.

It is noteworthy that several of Greece’s border points experienced double-digit increases in arrivals. For example, Kastanies on the Greek-Turkish border saw a 47.5 percent increase with 247,000 entries, and the Kyprinos border station on the Greek-Bulgarian border experienced a staggering 363 percent increase, totaling 272,000 arrivals in absolute numbers.

Conversely, the Krystallopigi crossing on the Greek-Albanian border was the only entry point to register a decrease in arrivals during the first nine months of 2024, falling by 7.7 percent to 535,000.

Road arrivals to Greece surpassing 2019 levels

In terms of total road arrivals to Greece from its neighboring countries, the data reveals the following:

During the first nine months of 2024, 1.4 million entries were recorded across all stations on the Greek-Albanian border, representing a marginal increase of 1.3 percent.

From Northern Macedonia, 2.9 million arrivals were recorded during the same period in 2024, reflecting an 8.8 percent increase compared to the January to September timeframe last year.

The Greek-Bulgarian border crossings led in total arrivals, with 4.8 million entries—an increase of 19.4 percent compared to the first nine months of 2023.

Lastly, road arrivals to Greece through the Greek-Turkish border amounted to 1.2 million, rising by 29.2 percent over the first three quarters of 2023.