Significant increase of over 18% in direct bookings at Greek hotels for Easter

A significant increase of 18.3% is recorded in direct hotel bookings at the most important destinations in Greece for Easter 2025, compared to the levels of the Easter period in 2024.

Essentially pre-empting the start of the 2025 season, this year's Easter is accompanied by an impressive "global pulse" for Greek tourism, due to the calendar coincidence of Orthodox and Catholic, acting as an accelerator of demand for the country's hotels.

The vast majority of Greek destinations are in positive territory, and two out of three are even recording a double-digit growth rate, with Crete emerging as the absolute "star" of booking dynamics. However, two of the most emblematic destinations for Greek tourism, Mykonos and Santorini, are “losing” the momentum of this upward trend.

Another characteristic of this year’s Easter mobility is that reservations come from a total of 112 different countries (with at least one reservation from each), while domestic tourism supplies Greek hotels with 12.6% more Greek reservations compared to Easter 2024.

These are the main trends that emerge from a Nelios analysis of all direct hotel reservations in the main Greek destinations for Easter. The analysis was based exclusively on booking data that includes an overnight stay on Holy Saturday, regardless of the length of stay.

Crete is the absolute protagonist

The booking picture is particularly positive in almost all regions of the country, with travelers showing a clear preference for destinations with authentic experiences. The absolute protagonist is Crete, which records a spectacular increase of 82.4% compared to the Easter period of 2024.

Strong dynamics are shown by the Dodecanese (+37.6%), the Peloponnese (+23.6%), Attica (+22.9%) and Mainland Greece (+19.3%), while the Ionian Islands also move up by 4.6% in terms of direct hotel bookings for Easter.

On the contrary, the Cyclades record a decrease of 11.4%, with bookings for Santorini decreasing by 20.2%, for Mykonos by -12.1% and for Naxos by -6.3%.

With the exception of these three islands and Kefalonia (-4.4%), all other individual destinations in the country are moving upwards, with those that invest in the authenticity and Easter character of the experiences they offer particularly benefiting.

Record growth for Patras, Kos, and Corfu

Patra shows the greatest momentum, with the increase in direct hotel bookings reaching 80.2%, proving that the city is being repositioned on the tourist map of Greece.

At the same time, Kos and Rhodes are recording an increase of 38.3% and 37.6% respectively, verifying the positive trend recorded in the Dodecanese, while Corfu, with an increase of 32.8%, remains firmly among the top Easter holiday destinations in Greece, thanks to its unique local customs. In the Cyclades, despite the downward trend in demand, Paros managed to record a 28.1% increase, balancing between its traditional and cosmopolitan character.

Similarly, destinations such as Pelion (+31.43%), Parga (+30.7%), Litochoro (26.67%) and Monemvasia (+23.1%), which combine natural beauty with a strong local character, are also showing an upward trend.

+13% bookings for Athens, +19% for Thessaloniki

Double-digit increases are also recorded in Rethymno (+19.66%) and Thassos (+19.1%), as well as in the country's major urban centers: The increase in direct bookings in Athens hotels amounts to 12.9% and Thessaloniki to 19.3%.

Milder increases in demand are recorded for Porto Heli (+9.8%), Spetses (+8.1%), Ios (+7.25%), Arachova (+6.6%) and Metsovo (+6.2%).

Strong boost in bookings from Israel

But which are the most dynamic international markets that are fueling the increase in direct bookings for Greek hotels?

The Israeli market is recording the most impressive increase, which is more than double compared to Easter 2024 for Greek hotels and stands at +178.5%. Factors that favor this trend are the increased air connectivity between the two countries and the perception of our country as a safe holiday destination.

This Easter, Greek hotels are also seeing increased demand from markets such as Romania (+36.2%), which is developing into an emerging road tourism market for Northern Greece, Italy with an increase of 26.1%, Spain with +22.8%, and the Netherlands with +22.1%.

Upward UK, USA, France, and Germany

An increased wave of bookings also comes from Austria and the UK (+16.1% and 16.7% respectively), while the important US market is up by 10.1% compared to Easter 2024, with an auxiliary factor of the enhanced direct flights to Athens.

Continuing with the main markets for Greek tourism, a milder increase is observed in direct hotel bookings from France (+8.3%) and Germany (+5.6%).

At the same time, increases are also observed in bookings from Belgium (+10%) and Switzerland (+9%), while distant markets such as Canada (+6.5%) and Australia (+5%).

A decline from Brazil, Scandinavia, the UAE, and the A. Europe

On the other hand, Brazil, the UAE, as well as Scandinavian and Eastern European countries, are all reporting significant booking losses compared to Easter 2024, indicating a possible demand shift or internal difficulties in these markets. Specifically, the largest decline is recorded in Brazil (-27.4%), followed by Bulgaria (-22.7%), the United Arab Emirates (-15.8%), Finland (-12.6%), Hungary (-10.3%), Ireland (-9.3%) and Norway (-4.3%).

Nelios CEO, Mr. Dimitris Serifis, stated in this regard:

"It is a very positive year for Easter, as expected, due to the calendar timing of Orthodox and Catholic Easter, which traditionally significantly boosts demand.

However, what particularly impresses us is the huge geographical spread of bookings, which come from 112 different countries, indicative of the global penetration of the Greek tourism product. This dynamic shows that Greece has further strengthened its position on the international tourism map, attracting visitors from every corner of the globe, even in periods when it has not traditionally shown strong demand.

It is worth noting that the drop in bookings from the UAE is largely due to the recent suspension of Wizz Air's daily Abu Dhabi - Athens connection."

• Since 2008, Nelios has been providing digital marketing services to tourism businesses and strengthening their online footprint, thus contributing decisively to the growth of their profitability. It is the first company in Greece to highlight the need to strengthen direct hotel bookings as a structural tool for sustainable development. It has collaborated with more than 800 hotels and over 100 tourism businesses of all types and categories, while it has received many distinctions for its services at a domestic and international level.

RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations, Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report

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