Across Southern Europe, the pandemic has changed the face of tourism. Hotels were already wrestling with higher fuel bills and inflation which a further energy price surge in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will only make worse. Yet, bookings are strong.
Industry and government officials in Greece are forecasting revenues will reach 80-90% of the record seen in 2019, when 33 million tourists brought in 18 billion euros in revenues, worth a fifth of national output.
Yet a bumper season is unlikely to offer much relief to struggling businesses that emerged from a decade-long financial crisis in 2018 only to have the pandemic bring global travel to a halt two years later.
So acute is the problem of soaring heating oil, gas and electricity prices that the president of the Greek tourism confederation SETE, Yiannis Retsos, wrote to ministers in January urging them to provide financial support, saying it was “objectively impossible” for year-round hotels to the cover their costs, especially after the quieter winter months.
Greece announced it was opening its tourism season as early as March 1 this year to meet demand but, like in Italy, Spain and Portugal, the season will not begin in earnest until the Easter break in April, a litmus test before the vital summer months.
Both Greece and Italy are racing to fill job shortages as the pandemic forced workers abroad for better-paying jobs or into different sectors with less uncertain prospects.
In Greece, the tourism minister even appealed to refugees fleeing Ukraine, offering them residence and work permits to fill 50,000 job gaps in hospitality.
Demand for Spanish holidays was looking very strong this year, according to the vice-president of industry association Exceltur, Jose Luis Zoreda, thanks to Spain’s high vaccination rates and the easing of pandemic restrictions in its big markets, the UK and Germany.
“There is a strong, accumulated travel appetite in Europe,” Zoreda said, forecasting an “explosion” of tourism from Easter onwards, but also lower profit margins due to inflation and energy prices.
Exceltur, however, also found tourists were seeking a different experience. In 2021, campsite rentals were up 19.2%, flat rentals were up by 16%, rural homes by 11%. Hotel usage fell by 8%, a decline also driven by fewer business trips.
Will you be travelling to Europe this year? Let us know – email editor@karryon.com.au.
Source: AAP
