"Today, with the announcement of the Statistical Service, the tourism success of 2024 is sealed in the most official way, which certainly belongs to the entire tourism ecosystem of our country," Deputy Minister of Tourism, Costas Koumis, said in a written statement, repeating his earlier statement that "the year 2024 will remain in history as a reference year for our country's tourism."
"As we had predicted, our country's tourism exceeds the 4 million visitor barrier for the first time. This is a historic achievement, accompanied by another historic achievement, as tourism revenues are expected to exceed the 3 billion euro barrier for the first time," notes Mr. Koumis in his written statement.
He also points out the government's particular satisfaction, given the challenges it has had to face since the beginning of the year, "such as the geopolitical instability in the Middle East, the economic situation in Europe, which is the main source of tourists for our country's tourism, and the problems facing the aviation sector."
“Achieving a record was not and is not an end in itself,” says Mr. Koumis, adding that “tourism is not just statistics on arrivals and revenues.” He explains that the government’s priority “cannot be other than strengthening the resilience of the tourism sector.”
He also underlines the importance of "the thousands of businesses that belong to our country's tourism industry, the vast majority of which are small and medium-sized enterprises, experiencing a good tourism year, and therefore good economic performance, because this is how economic resilience is built in the tourism sector."
"We continue to invest in education, and in improving our country's tourism product and the services provided, being fully aware that we now have to manage a series of new challenges, with a very important challenge, that of climate change and its impacts," concludes Mr. Koumis in his statement.
Moreover, in response to a journalist's question, in the context of a press conference for a Sponsorship Plan, regarding the prospects presented for tourism in 2025, Mr. Koumis said that at the moment the omens are good, but pointed out that "tourism is strongly and unpredictably influenced by external factors" and assured that "we are monitoring everything, in order to ensure another good year for tourism in our country."
Source: KYPE
