Greek and foreign tourists limited their dine out visits to restaurants during their vacations this summer, choosing more often to cook at the accommodation they were staying in or even turned to something ‘quick’ instead a proper meal at a tavern or restaurant.
Although ELSTAT’s most recent figures for the second quarter of 2023, which also include the first month of summer, show a 9.1% increase in turnover overall in catering businesses, however, industry professionals found that consumers’ spending in the tourist destinations were moderate this summer.
As noted recently on CNN Greece by Mr. Yiannis Papadopoulos, Regional Governor of the Panhellenic Federation of Restaurants and Related Professions of the South Aegean, the fall this summer in catering businesses in the region, compared to last year, was estimated to be around 20%.
He even pointed out that the reduction in consumption is much higher, if you take into account the fact that compared to 2022 the prices in the catalogs are higher by 18%-20%, due to the increased by 47% of the operating costs of the businesses.
A similar picture is described by professionals in other popular destinations in the country, noting that consumers on this year’s vacations made smaller bills at restaurants compared to previous years, while many chose to shop at the supermarket in order to cook, as long as the accommodation had the appropriate equipment. infrastructures.
The image of turnover
Based on the picture above, the increase in turnover recorded in the official data of ELSTAT in the catering sector seems to be largely related to the price increases compared to last year.
However, it is worth noting the -4.9% negative sign recorded in the second quarter of the year focusing on Mykonos, one of the most popular tourist destinations, while the Kea/Kythnos regional unit also showed a -5% drop. The rest of the country’s regions moved upwards compared to last year.
In Attica, the increase in turnover compared to the second quarter of 2022 was 8.1%. However, the catering professionals of the capital, as they point out to CNN Greece, saw their stores – with the exception of the historic center of Athens due to tourist traffic and some coastal areas – being filled only on weekends.
In Thessaloniki, on the other hand, a slight increase in turnover of 1.8% was recorded.
source: cnngreece