N. Chalkiadakis on TN | Arrivals take off at the airport in Kastelli

This year's season for Greek tourism will be up 3-4% compared to the already very successful last year, according to the impressions gained from the ITB international tourism exhibition in Berlin by the president of the Heraklion Hoteliers Association and president of the Crete Hoteliers Association, Mr. Nikos Chalkiadakis.

The flow of reservations and pre-reservations is satisfactory, and in many cases, they reach the record levels of 2024, Mr. Chalkiadakis said in his statements to Tornos News.

Because the season opens early again this year and April is a rather “stuck” month as many flights are missing from all airports, the season is expected to accelerate from May onward, he stressed.

However, there is a “ceiling” on the expected increase for 2025. Despite the positive data, the potential of large tourist destinations, such as Crete, remains limited as the Heraklion airport has reached its limits, unable to accept additional slots for aircraft. “When large destinations like Crete cannot bring in more visitors, there is an issue for Greek tourism, because the rest of the country’s destinations are much smaller, therefore they cannot raise the percentage for the entire country,” commented Mr. Chalkiadakis.

New prospects with the new airport in Kastelli

The big bet remains the new airport in Kastelli, which, according to the New Heraklion International Airport, will serve 10,000,000 passengers annually at the start, while during the concession period, it is expected to exceed 18,000,000 on an annual basis.

The construction of the airport will be completed in August 2026, when the first pilot flights will begin, while its full commercial operation is scheduled for February 2027.

The president of the Heraklion Hoteliers Association expressed hope that there will be no delays in its development, noting that the building works will be on schedule, with "the main problem at the moment being the road and the tunnel, 3 km long, from Hersonissos to Kastelli". This project had been frozen, but – according to his information – has now received the “green light”.

New direct flights from India, China, and the USA

According to the president of Heraklion Hoteliers, within the first five years after the opening of the airport, new major markets such as India, China, and America are expected to open, which will now be directly connected to Heraklion, Crete, dramatically increasing the prospects of tourism on the island.

“Heraklion will definitely become a major international hub and in fact with particular interest from the Indian market as there is participation in the shareholding structure”, underlined Mr. Chalkiadakis. It is recalled that the Company’s shareholding structure consists of 45.9% owned by the Greek State, 32.5% owned by GEK TERNA Kastelli S.A., and 21.6% owned by the Indian GMR Airports Greece Sole Proprietorship S.A.

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