10% increase in tourism traffic from Great Britain in 2024

At the same levels as last year, the next tourist season will be the same as last year, with the exception of Great Britain, where there will be an increase of at least 10%, while from Germany things are estimated to be much better compared to this year.

These are the messages coming from the London Tourism Fair, which opened its gates on Monday 6 November 2023, gathering a large number of exhibitors and visitors from all over Europe and the rest of the world.

Our destination is receiving optimistic signals for 2024 and according to estimates, the upcoming tourist season will open on our island, barring any unforeseen event, around March 25, 2024, a week before the Catholic Easter, while it is not yet clear how the holiday program on the island will be implemented for those who left the island in a hurry last July due to the fire.

Asked by Rodia, the president of the Dodecanese Tourist Office Association, Christos Michalakis, who is at the fair, said that from Great Britain things are very positive, something that was already known but now fully confirmed.

“Scheduled airline seats are up and pre-bookings are going very well. From where we have received messages about Rhodes they are very positive. We are optimistic. The messages are very positive and it looks like 2024 will be a good year,” he said.

Of course, everyone at the Report points out that the war in Israel is affecting this market, which is frozen, but they don’t think the 2024 season is in danger. Even in these conditions, Rhodes is a destination that stands out because of the security it provides.

In terms of last minute bookings, these will continue to characterize many markets as well as many tourists as has been the case in recent years.

In any case, the evolution of the situation in the Middle East will also play a role in the next tourist season, which will determine both the opening and the course of the season, as Egypt, with its resorts and its position close to the war zones, is an important factor.

Mr Matsigos
“All surveys show that the British will not cut back on travel. They will travel. Maybe they will cut back on days and they will go all inclusive to control their spending. Another feature is that they will prefer, not high season, because of the weather and because that’s when packages are more expensive.

So the beginning and end of the tourist season will fare better.

Another survey shows that most bookings from Germany and England will be made in January, after the end of the holidays and after “cash” in their finances citizens, “said also in “Rodia” the president of the Association of Hotel Managers Rhodes George Matsigos who is also in London, regarding the trends that exist for travel to Great Britain, our main market.
Also, as he underlines, in general sales so far are doing better than last year and although the numbers are still small, market trends and the forecast of airline seats by most major tour operators indicate an increase.

At the same time, he says, the signals from Germany are a little better than this time last year but that does not mean that the German market will do any better between now and the end of the new season as this year we have seen a decline of around 10%.

In fact, he notes that last year there was a fear of an increase in energy costs and packages were also increased, so Germans preferred nearby destinations and did not book holidays at this time of year.

However, because in the end, there was not such a large increase in energy costs due to the good weather conditions and because people believe that the situation will be the same this year, it is estimated that things will be better.

“So, despite the decrease in arrivals from Germany, we have no decrease in airline seats. We will be at last year’s levels from Germany. As far as France and Italy are concerned we had a decrease but it is too early to talk about these markets as they are closing holidays at the last minute,” added Matsigos, while on the war in Israel he said that everyone hopes that it will not extend in time and locally.

In conclusion, he stressed that Rhodes has always been based on providing quality at an affordable price and that what it seems is that no matter what happens people need to travel. It is something that is now necessary and needed, perhaps for fewer days, but the “thirst” for travel will be there.