Travel industry continues to monitor Greece

With a new deal which will likely see Greece remain in the European Union, the travel industry continues to watch the unfolding situation.

George Dimitrakopoulos of Mr. Travel in Toronto told PAX that despite recent news headlines, the current situation in the country didn’t appear to impact clients who were visiting Greece during the recent referendum, which saw the country vote against one set of economic bailout conditions, closing banks (prompting advisories to travellers to bring cash) and sparking political gatherings.

“They like to know what’s happening so we are advising them and hopefully things will be solved shortly,” he said. “They’ve said they’re very happy with the experience.”

Nicholas Kouros at Toronto’s Skyway Tours said that while new bookings had stopped in the lead-up to the referendum, no cancellations were made of existing bookings to Greece.

“This year, it started off very good in January and February,” he said, “but over the last three to four weeks, when they announced the referendum, bookings took a big dive.”

While the country’s economic woes have carried on for several years, both Dimitrakopoulos and Kouros said that bookings were not greatly affected until recently. According to several reports, worldwide bookings to Greece have sharply decreased in recent weeks.

The latest agreement is pending final approval in Greek parliament, expected by the end of the week. The country owes approximately 323 billion Euros to various lenders.