Op-Ed: ‘The Pandemic Leaves Behind Damages But Also Creates Opportunities for Tourism’ – Dimitris Fragakis

The Greek Travel Pages (GTP) has provided a podium for Greece’s key tourism figures to share their vision for the day after the Covid-19 pandemic.

“In a year of an unprecedented crisis, 2020 was one of survival for Greek tourism.

We aim for 2021 to be the beginning of the recovery, which is why we are implementing a reliable and coherent plan for the timely and safe opening of our tourism.

This year we have more “ammunition“ at our disposal compared to last year: vaccines, tests, health protocols and the “green certificate”, which was an initiative of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. These factors, together with the extremely increased demand that
exists for Greece this year and the country’s credibility, lead us to estimate that this season will be better than that of 2020.

Beyond that, however, we must focus on “the next day” as the pandemic acts as an accelerator of developments.

The challenges are many.

Sustainability is a crucial goal that will shape the attractiveness of our destinations.

Investing in authenticity and a unique identity are also critical elements that set us apart and differentiate us from competition, being key components of the new narrative of the promotion of Greek tourism.

Finally, safety, hygiene and the digitization of tourism services need to be accelerated as they will be important factors for one to choose a destination, therefore making it more competitive.

The pandemic leaves behind damages but also creates opportunities for the development of our tourism product. It is up to us not to let these opportunities go to waste.”

* This Op-Ed originally appeared in the Greek Travel Pages (GTP) annual printed edition for 2021. Press here for more information.