Cancellations are exclusively from Israelis
CORFU. The Corfu establishments that traditionally serve them are being affected. In general, the pace of bookings has slowed, according to the Hoteliers΄ Association.
Yesterday’s board meeting of the Hoteliers' Association was a regular session. And as far as we could tell over the phone, it was not tense despite the concern caused by the latest outbreak of armed conflict.
The blow to Corfu’s tourism came, as expected, from the Israeli market — and this is because Israelis cannot fly, and of course, the general atmosphere of war is not conducive to thoughts of holidays, especially when the strikes are taking place in cities.
Israelis are not an insignificant market for Corfu tourism. On the contrary, they rank 10th in arrivals, and the Corfu establishments that typically serve them must now manage the wave of cancellations.
According to the Airdata Tracker from the Institute of the Greek Tourism Confederation (INSETE), the total number of initially scheduled airline seats from Israel to Greece was over 1.3 million for the period from March to October, of which over 1 million concern the period from now until autumn. Compared to 2024, which had 933,000 seats, the total number is up this year by 42.3%. That, however, is expected to change dramatically downward if the conflict lasts long.
According to Eva Oikonomaki’s report for euro2day.gr, the destinations expected to be hit hardest by the war and its impact on air travel are Corfu, Athens, Heraklion, Rhodes, Thessaloniki, Mykonos and Kos.
Greece had captured the lion’s share of the Israeli market, at least in terms of scheduled airline capacity. While around 1.3 million seats had been scheduled for Greece, Cyprus — which ranks second — had 807,000 seats, and Italy even fewer, around 610,000.
In other news, and according to sources within the Corfu Hoteliers' Association, the pace of bookings has slowed, though it is not yet causing significant concern.
GIORGOS KATSAITIS
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