Greek Q1 tourism income drops 15%; fewer Russians, Germans

ATHENS (Reuters): Fewer German, British and Russian tourists visited Greece in the first quarter, contributing to a 15.1% drop in tourism receipts compared to the same period a year earlier, the country’s central bank said.

The drop dampens hopes for a strong tourism season this year to help an economy mired in a deep five-year recession and struggling with record unemployment.

A key sector for Greece’s 215-billion-euro economy that accounts for about a fifth of gross domestic product (GDP), tourism helped to narrow the country’s current account      gap to 9.8% of GDP in 2011.

The Bank of Greece said receipts from Russian and German visitors were down by 41 and 7.9% respectively, while those from British travellers - the country’s second-biggest tourism market after Germany - fell 11%.

“The data confirms that it will be a difficult year for the tourism sector. Recession in the euro zone and high uncertainty in Greece are having a negative impact,” said National Bank economist Nikos Magginas.

“The trend will probably worsen in the second quarter, so hopes for stabilisation are pushed back for after July,” he said.

Overall, the sector’s balance of payments showed a deficit of 28.5 million euros ($35.8 million) in the first quarter, down by 35.4 million year-on-year as Greeks also cut down on travel abroad.    

The Bank of Greece said total travel receipts declined to 396 million euros with visitors spending an average of 405 euros per trip, down 3.8% from the same period in 2011.

The number of travellers visiting Greece, which is still at the centre of the euro zone’s debt crisis, fell 11.7% in the first three months of the year to 978,600.

Tourism receipts from European Union visitors fell 28% year-on-year, while revenue from non-EU travellers was down 9.5%.

The Bank of Greece said revenue from Russian visitors fell 41% from the same period a year earlier.