From January to the end of September, the Mediterranean country, favored by tourists for its sunny islands and rich historical sites, received 31.6 million visitors, marking a four-percent rise compared to the same timeframe in 2024, according to data from the Bank of Greece released in late November.
“Overall, we anticipate that 2025 will be another record year for tourism in our nation,” Kefalogianni remarked in an interview with the Greek news agency ANA.
The conservative minister also expressed optimism for another successful year in 2026.
“The indicators for 2026 are already notably encouraging, giving us reason to be hopeful,” she added.
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Since the Covid-19 pandemic, Greece has consistently set new records in both tourism revenue and the influx of foreign visitors.
Throughout 2024, 40.7 million individuals visited Greece, representing a 12.8 percent increase from 2023.
However, this growth has raised concerns regarding rampant construction in various hotspots, while residents of Athens have voiced complaints about the rise of short-term holiday rentals leading to soaring rent costs.
Heatwaves exacerbated by climate change and increasingly severe wildfires also threaten the sector, which Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has championed since assuming office in 2019, aiming to rejuvenate the economy following the financial crisis.
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According to the Institute of the Greek Tourism Confederation (INSETE), tourism contributed directly around 13 percent to GDP in 2024 and indirectly accounted for over 30% of GDP.
Meanwhile, farmers have been demonstrating in Greece and have pledged to continue road blockades for a second consecutive week, even as the prime minister reiterated on December 21 that the government is open to discussions.
Greek farmers are furious over prolonged delays in subsidy payments linked to a scandal involving embezzled European Union agricultural funds, and they are also facing challenges such as low prices, rising energy expenses, and worsening climatic conditions.
“Blocking roads and other public infrastructure that belongs to everyone… harms the country” as well as “local economies in the regions,” stated conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in a Facebook post.
After a meeting on Saturday afternoon, farmers’ unions dismissed the prime minister’s invitation to engage in talks on Monday, following protests last week that temporarily obstructed the central port of Volos.
This port serves as a crucial entry point into Thessaly, Greece’s agricultural core, which is still struggling to recover from the extensive damage to livestock and infrastructure caused by Storm Daniel in 2023.
