Europeans Boost 2014 Tourism in Chalkidiki

After five years of reduced tourist flow in the region of Chalkidiki, northern Greece, it appears that in 2014 there is a significant rise in bookings by European tour operators, according to Chalkidiki Tourism Organization. The administration of the organization, taking advantage of the direct flights to the airport “Macedonia” in Thessaloniki, implemented a highly targeted strategy contacting airlines and tour operators in Europe in order to include as many locations and resort lodgings as possible in online and printed tourist guides. Arrivals from Germany increased by 11.70% compared to last year’s May. At the same time, there is a rise in allotment contracts in the hotels of Chalkidiki. These contracts refer to a specific time frame during which the hotel can provide, on a daily basis, a certain number of rooms. Arrivals from the United Kingdom increased by 30.5% in May due to regular low-cost flights to Thessaloniki. In May the Chalkidiki Tourism Organization carried out a familiarization trip with the participation of 20 British travel agents and offices (including BA HOLIDAYS). The trip included visits to areas of Chalkidiki, Thessaloniki and Vergina. A similar trip will also take place in October. Transavia airlines with 3 weekly direct flights from Amsterdam to Thessaloniki, brought, for the first time after 15 years, Dutch tourists to Chalkidiki. It is estimated that  more than 2,500 people visited Chalkidiki in May. Ryanair’s daily flights, from Charleroi Airport in Brussels, the selected journalists by the Greek National Tourism Organization who “discovered” the area and the Belgian tour operators targeting a special category of tourists   contributed to the arrival of 4,700 Belgian visitors. In May, Belgian arrivals increased by 206% compared to the same period in 2013. Finally, the neighboring Turkey has shown a strong interest in destinations in northern Greece. It is estimated that more than 25 hotels in Chalkidiki and many rooms for rent will accommodate Turkish visitors in 2014.

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