Michalos: Greek citizens’ holidays should be subsidized with 1 billion euros

The president of the Central Union of Chambers and the Commercial and Industrial Chamber of Athens, Mr. Konstantinos Michalos, expressed restrained optimism about the tourist traffic in Greece, speaking to France24. As he pointed out, as early as mid-May, the country opened its doors to tourists, but due to the course of vaccinations at a pan-European level, the tourist traffic was not satisfactory.

“We hope that from July 1 and for at least two months, tourist traffic will increase.

“But if we have a repeat of 2020, this will be absolutely catastrophic not only for the tourism market, but also for the tourism industry as a whole.”

Afterwards, the Mr Michalos pointed out the need for the EU to move faster, so that vaccinations can proceed quickly and Europe can reach levels of immunity.

At the same time, he said that the funds of the Recovery Plan are not enough, noting that the EU has so far approved a total of 750 billion euros without even giving the first tranche, when on the other side of the Atlantic, a colossal amount of 11.3 trillion11 has been approved which has already been distributed to the market.

Finally, he said that there are widespread fears that a large number of companies will be forced to close down after the end of the tourist season, if the unfavorable scenario of non-limitation of pandemic cases applies.

To significantly strengthen domestic tourism

The need to strengthen domestic tourism was pointed out once again, answering a question by journalists, Mr. Konstantinos Michalos, emphasizing that due to the uncertainty that exists after the appearance of coronavirus mutations, the proposal of the Union of Chambers for targeted measures to enhance domestic tourism remains highly relevant.

Specifically, the Union has proposed the implementation of a holiday subsidy program for Greek citizens with a total expenditure of approximately € 1 billion, an amount that corresponds to 5% of total tourism revenues in 2019.

The object of the program should be the subsidy of beneficiaries and their beneficiary members, for the realization of holidays in all the Tourist Accommodations of their choice in Greece. The subsidy will be made by issuing a special holiday voucher.

The program can be implemented from 01.07.2021 to 31.12.2021 and the beneficiaries will be able to spend up to five (5) nights in the tourist accommodations they choose freely throughout the implementation of the program.

The amount of the economic value of the check will be proportional to the type and category of the tourist accommodation. The check is offset against the charge rates of the accommodation while the difference is borne exclusively by the beneficiary and is obligatory to his/her own participation.

The stimulation of the domestic demand is a necessary condition in order to ensure those complements that will make the operation of the hotel units viable and the beginning for the return to normalcy “, stressed Mr. Michalos