"A pin does not fall" at the country's Carnival & March 25th getaways
Where the Greeks will have a Clean Monday
Starting with the carnival destinations, which traditionally star with high occupancy, Patras, Xanthi, Skyros, Rethymnon, Naoussa, Kastoria, Tirnavos, Kozani, Ioannina, Kefalonia, Rhodes, Amfissa, Kalamata, Galaxidi and Corfu will attract Greek visitors from every corner of the country, the president of the federation of tourist offices in Greece Lysandros Tsilidis notes.
The 3-day carnival always has increased traffic mainly in the areas where the carnivals are held with great success, notes Mr. Tsilidis and adds that the main characteristic of the 3-day carnival is the fact that the visitors come from the urban centers near the carnival areas. At the same time, organized travel once again prevails in the planning of travelers and for this reason travel agencies pre-purchased seats on ships and planes in order for consumers to buy budget packages. From the above, it can be concluded that the carnival destinations do not "drop a pin" from the visitors, as occupancy exceeds 90% in open accommodation. At this point, Mr. Tsilidis speaks of an increase in sales this year in excursion packages of more than 10%, compared to 23, when last year there was a 30% increase compared to 2022.
Regarding the prices of the packages given to Greek travelers, they were competitively priced and for this reason there was a great response, explains Mr. Tsilidis. Specifically, a 3-day stay in Patras starts from 115 euros per person (2 nights - transport and accommodation). A five-day stay in Xanthi starts from 135 euros per person, a 5-day stay in Skyros costs 310 euros, in Rethymno 3 nights will cost 375 euros per person, while in Kastoria for 2 nights the person will spend 175 euros.
Clean Monday Vs March 25th
Given the great appeal of the well-known traditional carnival destinations, it is interesting to see how the destinations of the Central Greece region will move over the two or three days. Speaking to APE-MPE, Sofia Flega, president of the hoteliers in Karpenisi, notes that the three-day period of March 25 shows better mobility than that of the Carnival, and this is because the area does not have any special event to attract carnival excursionists.
Moreover, the fact that both 3 days are consecutive does not help, as Mrs. Flega mentions. In any case, occupancy in the accommodations on Halloween will be recorded at 80%, while for the three days of March 25, occupancy will reach 90%, always for Karpenissi. Regarding the available prices of the accommodation, the double room starts from 70 euros. Remaining in the region of Central Greece, Evia due to its proximity to Athens will move with very good occupancy, as the president of the Edipsos hoteliers reports to APE-MBE, especially with regard to the three days of Halloween. As Mr. Roumeliotis explains, occupancy will exceed 80%, since a carnival parade with 35 floats will take place in Loutra of Edipsos, an event that will attract many visitors. For March 25, however, things are not expected to have the same momentum, since the picture of pre-bookings does not reveal a corresponding picture.
Of course, hope is transferred to last-minute reservations, as Mr. Roumeliotis mentions. However, there will be rooms available for those who decide to travel to Evia at the last minute, with prices starting at 40 euros for a double room. On the same wavelength and one of the most popular carnival destinations, Rethymno, where the accommodation occupancy is at 100% for the three days of the Carnival and locals and visitors will experience the magic of the Rethymnon carnival, as the tourism consultant emphasizes to APE-MPE of the municipality, Kostas Falangas.
The Rethymnon carnival is an institution, as early as 1914, the year in which there are reports of events. As it is characteristically mentioned: "the first elements of humorous events, carnivals of another era, which has left its nostalgic aroma diffused to still smell", says Mr. Fallangas. With the preparations of the hotels being at their zenith in view of the new tourist year, The Westin Resort Costa Navarino hotel, which has already been open since February, has occupancy that reaches 100% for the two 3 days of Carnival and March 25, with the Greeks to have a significant share in the hotel's traffic. In fact, the hotel receives a large number of golfers from Northern Europe, also due to the fact that direct flights to Kalamata airport have started. The rest of the Costa Navarino units open in April and early May.
After the festive 3 days and the escapades of the Greeks, foreign visitors to Greece will take over, as from the beginning of April the country's tourist resorts open one after the other and until Easter there will not be a tourist business that will not be open to country. The messages for 2024 are positive and everyone hopes that the new tourist season will be another year in which Greek tourism will be the protagonist of the positive news.
