Greece’s Year-round Hotels See Occupancy Levels Reach 60% During Holiday Season

Hotel occupancy levels at winter destinations in Greece reached 60 percent during the Christmas and New Year holidays, the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (HCH) announced on Monday.

Citing figures by the Winter Hotel Observatory of the Institute for Tourism Research and Forecasts (ITEP), HCH said that the vast majority – 97 percent – of hotels on Greece’s mountainous regions were open during the Christmas holidays.

Meanwhile, the percentage of city hotels that remained open during the same period was at 77 percent. This means that one in four were closed.

According to the observatory’s figures, occupancy levels at city hotels remained low – at 33 percent in November, dropping further to 20 percent in January.

The study also indicates that “both mountain and city hotels are operating amid another coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic wave, with increasing operating costs for energy and raw materials”, while room prices remain low (62 euros on average during the holiday season).

The observatory’s figures concern the operation of year-round hotels during the period November 29 – January 9.

Positive signs for Greek tourism in 2022

Speaking to reporters during an online press conference on Monday, HCH President Alexandros Vassilikos said that despite the difficult circumstances of the coronavirus pandemic, booking trends for the tourism season ahead were positive.

“Greece will leave the Covid-19 crisis with a stronger brand name… This is the result of the country’s serious efforts to confront the pandemic. We receive positive messages… but we still have to wait and see how the pandemic evolves,” he said.