Handelsblatt: Tourism helping Greece recover from econ crisis

Handelsblatt credits a booming tourism sector as helping recession-battered Greece recover, while also pointing to a return of real estate buyers in holiday areas.

In an extensive report from the country, the German financial daily notes that “one success after another is being recorded in Greece’s tourism economy. The number of visitors since 2012 has nearly doubled. A new record for arrivals is expected in 2019. Tourism is developing into an even more powerful engine of the Greek economy…”

Handelsblatt also notes that businesspeople active in the real estate sector are now investing billions for into new hotels units in Greece.

The German daily quotes a study by Algean Properties citing the highest weekly lease rates for luxury properties in Mykonos going for 11,500 euros and 8,000 euros in Santorini, which are less than San Trope or Ibiza but which retain a much higher profit margin for owners, due to lower property values.

“Whoever buys today in Greece benefits from the problems of the past. The eight-year recession left its marks on the Greek real estate sector. According to Bank of Greece calculations, over the 2009-2017 period, prices fell by 42 percent on average. In holiday areas the decrease was less, and averaged 38 percent,” the Handelsblatt article read.