Tourism in Greece is experiencing an upward trajectory in 2025, with preliminary data from the Bank of Greece indicating a notable increase in travel revenues and visitor numbers compared to the same period in 2024.

Specifically, in January 2025, travel revenues increased by 7.5%, reaching 302.2 million euros, up from 281.0 million euros in January 2024.

Travel expenditures also saw a sharp rise of 30.0%, amounting to 214.7 million euros compared to 165.1 million euros in the previous year. This increase in travel revenue is attributed to an 11.4% rise in inbound tourist arrivals, even though the average expenditure per trip declined by 3.5%.

Net revenues from travel services helped offset the trade balance deficit by 3.0% and accounted for 34.7% of total net service revenues.

Breakdown of Travel Revenue

In January 2025, travel revenues rose by 7.5% year-on-year, reaching 302.2 million euros. However, revenues from EU-27 residents fell by 2.5%, while revenues from non-EU countries surged by 18.9%.

The decline in revenues from EU-27 residents was mainly due to a 50.6% drop in earnings from non-eurozone EU countries, this January 2025 compared to the same month last year. Conversely, revenues from eurozone residents increased by 9.9%.

Among eurozone countries, Germany recorded a 16.2% rise in travel revenues, while France saw a steep 47.3% decline, with revenues from Italy increasing by 17.4%.

Outside the EU, the UK recorded a substantial 36.4% rise in travel revenues, while revenues from the U.S. increased by 20.4%. In contrast, travel revenues from Russia amounted to just 1.6 million euros.

Inbound Tourism Trends

According to the Bank of Greece, inbound travel traffic in January 2025 reached 821,600 visitors, marking an 11.4% increase compared to the same period in 2024.

Notably, air travel arrivals increased by 24.9%, while land border arrivals declined by 9.7%. The overall rise in travel traffic was driven by a 3.0% increase in arrivals from EU-27 countries and a 19.8% increase from non-EU countries.

German arrivals surged by 35.3%, reaching 95,000 visitors, while French arrivals dropped by 45.2% to 23,300 visitors. Italian visitor numbers increased by 19.6% to 45,800.

Among non-EU countries, travel traffic from the UK skyrocketed by 110.7%, reaching 76,200 visitors, while U.S. arrivals declined by 11.3% to 48,500 visitors.