Tourism Revenues Exceeded €20 Billion, Surpassing 2019 Levels

Between January and November last year, travel receipts reached €20.115 billion, as the Bank of Greece revealed.

Such a figure marks a 15.4 per cent increase compared to 2022 and a ten per cent increase compared to 2019, the pre-pandemic year, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

In 2022, travel receipts amounted to nearly €17.7 billion, whereas in 2019 reached about €18.2 billion.

This development was due to increased receipts from residents of the EU27 by 11 per cent to €10,997.2 million and in receipts from residents outside the EU27 by 18.4 per cent to €8,419.4 million.

Among EU27 countries, Germany topped the list, with receipts reaching €3.51 billion, followed by France with €1.41 billion. Receipts from both countries increased compared to last year by 8.7 per cent and 11.6 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, among non-EU27 countries, receipts from the United Kindom reached €3.32 billion, marking a six per cent increase. Revenues from the United States amounted to 1.34 billion, a 15.1 per cent increase.

However, Greece’s tourism experienced a 22.8 per cent decrease in receipts from Russia, reaching €31.4 million.

In addition to revenues, during the 11 months of 2023, Greece saw a 17.3 per cent increase in inbound travellers compared to 2022.

The Bank of Greece unveiled that the volume of travellers passing through airports increased by 12.5 per cent, whereas the traveller traffic at road border-crossing points experienced a growth of 34.5 per cent.

In the period under review, the number of travellers from within the EU27 rose by 15 per cent year-on-year to 19,285.5 thousand, while travellers from outside the EU27 increased by 20.9 per cent to 12,684.2 thousand.

The majority of tourists that visited Greece during the first 11 months of 2023 were from Germany (+ 8.7 per cent), France (four per cent), the UK (2.9 per cent) and the US (31.3 per cent).

Meanwhile, the number of tourists from Russia visiting Greece decreased by 5.9 per cent.

In general, Greek authorities have reported higher figures throughout 2023, implying the country is returning and even exceeding the pre-pandemic levels. In addition to this new record in revenue, Greece had already surpassed 2019 levels last monthas announced by the Bank of Greece.

Furthermore, Athens Airport welcomed over 28 million travellers last yearmarking a nearly ten per cent increase compared to 2019 levels.

Greece has recently implemented a climate tax on accommodations based on the rating of the establishments. Through this tax, the government aims to raise funds in a bid to support reconstruction efforts and enhance climate resilience.