Greek Economy Boosted by Tourism in Second Quarter of 2022

Greece’s surge in tourism this year has boosted the country’s economy in the second quarter, according to data released by the Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) on Wednesday.

Greece’s GDP grew by an impressive 7.7 percent compared to the corresponding April-June period last year, almost double the rate of the Eurozone average of 4.1 percent.

In an announcement on Thursday, Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias said the economy’s “excellent performance” reflects the decisive impact and added value of Greek tourism to the country’s GDP.

“And even more so during a particularly critical period amid multiple crises and inflationary pressures internationally,” the minister said added.

Commenting more on ELSTAT’s data, Kikilias highlighted that Greece’s exports of services – which includes tourist receipts – increased by 7.2 percent in the second quarter of the year.

The minister referred to the recent data released by the Bank of Greece on the record levels of tourist flows to the country in June, which showed a rise in travel receipts for that month. In June alone Greece recorded an increase of 2.3 percent in revenue and a 15.9 percent rise in the average expenditure per trip compared to the same month in 2019.

Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias.

“These figures are not coincidental but are the result of collective effort, hard and methodical work,” Kikilias said, adding that since the beginning of last autumn, the ministry carried out a strategy to extend the tourism season, which this year started earlier than ever before (March) and is expected to wrap up by the end of 2022.

Moreover, he said that the ministry promoted more and more new Greek destinations and shaped the investment environment to attract leading funds with a focus on tourism sector.

“Our visitors are now spending more money and are staying more in our country, which translates into tax revenues for the Greek economy and into multiple revenues for the business world and our local communities,” he said, adding that the ministry’s actions also managed to fill the gap left by this year’s absence of the Russian and Ukrainian markets due to the war, and of the Chinese market which remained closed due to Covid-19.

Positive outlook for third quarter

Referring to the third quarter of 2022, the tourism minister noted that the first figures are already very encouraging.

“And on this basis we continue because tourism is a national affair. It means new jobs, support for the turnover of companies operating in the sector, support for the primary sector and agricultural production, new investments, and support for the income of the average Greek family,” he concluded.