Greece has experienced a pick-up in sales following last week’s election, say tour operators.
Sunvil Holidays reported a rise in bookings last week and said bookings on Monday this week were 50% up on the comparable day a year ago.
Ionian Island Holidays reported sales up by one third on last year so far in June, with Kefalonia, Corfu, Paxos and Ithaca particularly popular.
Sailing Holidays suggested there had been a revival of searches for Greece holidays following the election.
Barry Nielson, managing director of Sailing Holidays, said: “The result of the elections has offered stability overcoming the negative publicity Greece has received for a long time. The outcome is that Britons want to go to Greece.”
Cosmos Holidays reported capacity for Greece in July as “really strong”.
Alexandros Konstantinou of the Greek National Tourism Organisation’s office in London said: “UK consumers appeared especially concerned about the outcome of the election.
“There was a never an issue that Britons wouldn’t like to go to Greece, but people were unsure what they would find on the ground. Now there is more confidence. The election result has diminished the doubt in people’s minds.”
He said bookings picked up “as soon as it was confirmed Greece would stay in the euro”. Konstantinou added: “The islands never had any problems – never any shortage of food or fuel. The [media] reports were wrong.”
Most UK holidaymakers head for the Greek islands where there has been no civil unrest due to the country’s economic crisis. The problems have mainly centred on the Greek parliament in Athens.