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The behaviour of the European travellers changes, directly affecting both preferred periods holiday as well as the selected destinations. The trend towards travel in locations with less tourist congestion, in periods other than summer peaks, and the increase in short escapes (city breaks) in the metropolises of the Old Continent, it is now evident. This phenomenon is clearly reflected in the Greece, which attracts increasing tourist flows, not only in Athens, but now also in Thessaloniki throughout the year and not exclusively during the two months of July – August.
For Greek tourism These findings sound like a wake-up call, but at the same time also as a necessary cause for strategic redesign. In iconic and internationally recognised destinations in the country, such as Mykonos and Santorini, the picture of suffocating shocks, long waits and the exhaustion of local infrastructure – from water to transport – at the peak of the summer now causes apparent dissatisfaction in a significant portion of high-level travelers. These destinations are at risk of losing their attractiveness to the eyes of an audience who now refuses to suffer during the holidays and puts the quality of the overall experience in the first place.
64% of Europeans record a strong travel intention, accompanied by the mood for significant consumer spending. In particular, eight out of ten are planning travel within Europe, while four out of ten budget over EUR 1,500. These are travellers who turn to alternative destinations, choose longer stays and make more frequent trips out of peak periods, according to its findings. new European Travel Commission (ETC) study. Indicatively, 51% heads to less popular destinations and 10% of travelers choose more remote areas.
At the same time, travel planning becomes more targeted, with 50% choosing over seven nights' stay and 67% traveling during the mid-term season or low season, thus contributing to the optimal distribution of tourist flows.
They turn to alternative destinations, choose longer stays and travel more often outside peak periods.
This differentiation is also reflected in individual types of tourism: 22% qualify for traditional model «sun and sea», 15% chooses City travel, cultural experiences and activities in nature, while 10% is directed towards well-being tourism.
By contrasting these data with Greek reality, a strong contradiction emerges. The dominant, even today, model of domestic tourism product remains completely interwoven and one-dimensionally attached to the diptych «sun and sea». It is typical that the vast majority of new large investment funds are directed almost exclusively at the construction of luxury five-star seaside resort. However, this strategy, although it provides revenue in the short term, is no longer sufficient by itself to meet the rapidly increasing demand for the other types of travel described in the survey. Although the Greece has a literally inexhaustible reservoir of alternatives – from its pristine forests and historical paths Pindu and Peloponnese, until the unexplored villages of the mainland, authentic agrotourism and healing sources of well-being – it does not seem so far to have incorporated these treasures into the forefront of its tourist arsenal. The country has the destinations, but is lagging significantly behind in developing them, noting deficiencies at the level of targeted infrastructure, specialised services and coordinated international visibility.
The analysis is based on a sample of 24,000 Europeans, participating in ETC's rolling survey «Monitoring Sentition for Intra – European Travel (MSIET)» for the period October 2024 – March 2026. The research was carried out in cooperation with the Mindhaus, strategic tourism marketing company.
At the same time, the basic selection criteria for destination παραμένουν σταθερά, με πρώτα την ασφάλεια (45%), τις ευνοϊκές καιρικές συνθήκες (35%), τις ανταγωνιστικές προσφορές (30%) και τη φιλοξενία των τοπικών κοινωνιών (28%). Ταυτόχρονα, εντείνεται ο προβληματισμός σχετικά με το φαινόμενο του συνωστισμού (overtourism). Ειδικότερα, το 25% των ερωτηθέντων εκφράζει ανησυχία για τον υψηλό όγκο επισκεπτών, ενώ το 26% επιλέγει συνειδητά προορισμούς χαμηλής τουριστικής πυκνότητας. Αυτοί οι αριθμοί αποτελούν σαφές μήνυμα: η απλή παράθεση κλινών και η υπερεκμετάλλευση κορεσμένων νησιωτικών brands δεν αποτελούν πλέον εχέγγυο επιτυχίας. Οι σύγχρονοι ταξιδιώτες απαιτούν ζωτικό χώρο και ηρεμία. Αξιοσημείωτο παραμένει, ωστόσο, το γεγονός ότι μόλις το 15% δηλώνει ότι λαμβάνει σοβαρά υπόψη το προσωπικό περιβαλλοντικό αποτύπωμα των ταξιδιών του.
Αξιολογώντας τα παραπάνω δεδομένα, ο γενικός διευθυντής της Mindhaus, Κωνσταντίνος Τριανταφύλλης, σημειώνει ότι «ο ευρωπαϊκός τουρισμός δεν εξελίσσεται απλώς σε επίπεδο τάσεων, αλλά και σε επίπεδο αξιών, αποτυπώνοντας μια σαφή μετάβαση προς πιο συνειδητές ταξιδιωτικές επιλογές. Αυτό μεταφράζεται σε ένα νέο πλαίσιο ζήτησης, όπου η εμπειρία και η ποιότητα αποκτούν καθοριστικό ρόλο στη διαμόρφωση της τουριστικής αξίας. Σε αυτό το περιβάλλον καθίσταται κρίσιμο οι προορισμοί να μπορούν να ανταποκρίνονται ουσιαστικά στις μεταβαλλόμενες προσδοκίες των ταξιδιωτών και να ενισχύουν τη μακροπρόθεσμη ανταγωνιστικότητά τους μέσα από πιο βιώσιμες στρατηγικές ανάπτυξης».
