Weak season in famous Mediterranean destinations.
Izvor: Youtube/the Luxury Travel Expert/Screenshot
The most popular Greek islands Mykonos and Santorini they started this season badly. So far, they are recording 20 percent fewer arrivals compared to 2019, local media are concerned about this year’s season, writes Jutarnji list.
It’s supposed to be the bad image of Mykonos was affected by the recent brutal attack on an archaeologist who was supervising illegal construction work there. The perpetrators have been fined, and the Hellenic Association of Archaeologists attributes the attack to investors. Greek Environment Minister Kostas Skrekas reacted strongly to the attack by banning the issuance of any new building permits outside specially designated zones.
In addition, in the town of Psarou the removal of illegally built structures began, which also demotivated tourists from coming to the islandwhile many media strongly blame the bad season high prices that make Mykonos and Santorini unaffordable for domestic touristswhile foreigners prefer to choose cheaper destinations such as Turkey, Spain and Morocco.
At the same time, due to the fact that they cannot cope with the rising costs, 200 family hotels with three and four stars are currently advertised for sale in Greece, with an average of 10 to 30 rooms, a large part of which is in Mykonos and Santorini. Their owners are currently unable to pay the high costs of loans and energy or cope with the frequent changes in business rules and inflation, and the average prices, depending on the location, range from half a million to 650,000 euros for the building. According to local media, in the past few months alone, hotels worth a total of 320 million euros have changed hands.
(WORLD)