Greece is urging British holidaymakers to travel to the country rather than other popular destinations such as Spain.
Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has tried to reassure the people of his country that they do not have an overtourism problem, adding that issues have raised due to tourists being concentrated in certain destinations.
He said: “Greece does not have an overtourism problem; rather, it faces the challenge of concentrated tourist activity in specific destinations for a few months of the year.”
Mr Mitsotakis made the comments as he addressed the ‘Reimagine Tourism in Greece’ conference.
He continued: “In certain Aegean islands, during peak months, the infrastructure is being stretched. With better infrastructure, theoretically, we could accommodate more tourists.
“The question is not whether we want more tourists, but whether we want tourists who will spend more in our country.
“Our priority is on boosting revenue. I am more interested in breaking revenue records, which is, of course, tied to the number of arrivals, but more importantly, I focus on tourism’s overall impact on the country’s development.”
Countries like Spain have seen a number of big protests as locals rail against the level of tourism in their towns and cities.
But Mr Mitsotakis said Greece won’t see similar protests.
Mykonos and Santorini are among the Greek destinations that have experienced the most demand from holidaymakers.
Greece has subsequently introduced plans to charge cruise ship passengers €20 when they arrive at the islands.
At the time, Mr Mitsotakis said: “Cruise shipping has burdened Santorini and Mykonos and this is why we are proceeding with interventions.”
Speaking this week, he added: “Santorini urgently needs a new port. We have made the decision to initiate this as a project under the Ministry of Infrastructure, which must be completed as quickly as possible.”
While some locals in Greece have expressed frustration with the number of tourists visiting the country, tourism brought in about €20billion (£16.7billion) in 2023.
