Concern about August bookings
CORFU. Hoteliers and travel agents in Corfu and elsewhere are starting to feel concerned about the perceived ‘stutter’ in bookings for July and August. The signs are already visible in Corfu and it isn’t due to the waste management crisis even though some have interpreted it this way.
An executive from an international tourism company told Enimerosi that if this was the case then the indications would be limited to Corfu. This is not the case, however – the freezing of bookings and low demand for popular Greek destinations including Corfu is a general phenomenon.
The reappearance of Turkey
It has – for two reasons - been attributed to the aggressive reappearance of Turkey in the tourist market. The first reason is the drop in value of the Turkish lira which suddenly makes its destinations seem like a great opportunity for the tour operators to make bigger profits. This is aided by Turkish tourist properties (mainly 5-star) offering huge discounts in room prices in order to ‘reboot’ their tourist industry.
The second reason can be found in the resurgence of Turkish-Russian relations geopolitically which affects the economy in general, trade and above all tourism. Russian tour operators quickly took advantage of the improved relationship between Moscow and Ankara – even abandoning bookings in Crete, it has been said, which were prepaid! A small drop in Russian visitors is expected in Corfu, which can be countered by the make-up of the local travel agents and their broader strategic ambitions. An experienced member of the industry, however, when talking about Russian tourism said that the free market doesn’t really care too much about such things.
The butterfly effect
It also seems to have had an effect on the Greek – German connection with an unexpectedly large number of empty seats in flights to Corfu (over 1,000 seats a month not taken belong to a large tour operator) and the unexpected appearance of reduced prices in the summer season from low cost airlines making a return flight from Corfu to Germany cheaper than a flight to Athens!
There are rumours in the market of a discount policy already being put into practice by Corfu properties – something difficult to confirm as no one wants to allow these rumours to spread. Last week the Hoteliers Association President Babis Voulgaris stated categorically that there haven’t been cancellations (when asked about the effect of the refuse crisis being reported in the international media) and that hotels are improving their services in order to overcome any negative images and comments due to the piles of refuse.
HATTA – the Greek travel agents association – will discuss the latest developments in the tourist market at a committee meeting tomorrow. It has, however, already been extensively talked about in the Greek industry media.
