ATHENS – Greece is on a path to set another record in tourism in 2024 – as many as 33 million people – drawn year round now and with islands with airports especially seeing rises in visitors because of their easy accessibility to those who can afford it.

In a feature about the growing gains, the site TTGMedia noted that the United Kingdom’s Office of National Statistics said Greece accounted for 5 percent of trips by Brits, fourth behind Spain, France and Italy.

https://www.ttgmedia.com/features/how-greece-is-extending-its-tourism-season-one-island-at-a-time-47722

And they’re coming from around the world, lured especially in the summer by islands and beaches and celebrities flocking to hot spots on yachts and social media sensation shots on Instagram and TikTok and the like.

Greece for decades counted on tourists mostly between May and October but the season has been extended although so many come in the summer that popular islands are buckling under the strain and facing water shortages.

“Our first flight arrived this year on April 1st – the earliest ever,” Skiathos island Mayor Thodoris Tzoumas told the site about people coming earlier than ever, some hoping to avoid the summer hordes.

“The season here usually ends at the beginning of October, but this year easyJet has committed to flying until the end of that month, allowing guests to experience our island at a time when it’s usually almost empty and our hiking trails and cultural attractions come into their own,” he said.

“Many stakeholders, tour operators, airlines, hoteliers, restaurant owners , have come together for this opportunity,” he said, adding: “The result will improve tourism flows and ensure a more sustainable model from which everybody benefits.”

Konstantinos Santikos, whose Santikos Collection includes two Skiathos hotels, said that, “Extending an established tourist season is a little bit chicken-and-egg,” but that islands with airports can draw those who don’t want to take ferries.

Eleni Skarveli, the UK Director for the Greece National Tourism Organisation told the site that, “We have been collaborating with British tour operators to extend summer tourism.”

She said that is “Both to popular destinations like Corfu, Rhodes, Crete and Kos, but also to cities and cultural hotspots on the mainland with year-round appeal, such as Thessaloniki, Kalavrita, Epirus and Olympia.”

The British tour agency Sunvil’s Sales and Marketing Manager Rachel Jelley said, “We’re particularly keen on more off-the-beaten-track destinations,” taking people to places where most don’t go.

Luxury specialist Planet Holidays Director Harry Kyrillou said, “We’ve offered Athens year-round for more than two decades,” the rich having plenty of options with more high-end resorts and 5-Star hotels catering to them.

“The key to sustainable tourism growth is to balance the needs of the market with those of the local communities,” said Skarveli, with many Greeks in overrun areas tired of the tourists they almost begged to come during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“While we’re working hard to introduce travelers to Greece beyond the sea and sun stereotypes, the existing seasonal model has been developed by local people, who switch between summer tourism jobs and other occupations in winter. Any decision to change this pattern is ultimately theirs to make,” she said.