Türkiye, Greece, Egypt expect influx of Europeans to "overwinter"

Türkiye, Greece and Egypt plan to become a "winter home" for Europeans willing to move to warmer climes to save money amid the suspension of Russian gas supplies to the European Union (EU).

First of all, this concerns pensioners, there are about 150 million pensioners in Europe, and those who work remotely, Izvestia reports on September 11 citing the Association of Tour Operators in Russia (ATOR).

Only Türkiye expects to receive at least a million German tourists this winter.

"Türkiye's hospitality industry intends to receive twice as many holidaymakers from the EU in the coming months as it did a year earlier. Chairman of the Antalya Provincial Tourism Association (AKTOB) Erkan Yagci said that the upcoming winter season will be the best during the last three years. At least 152 hotels in Antalya province will continue receiving guests throughout the winter this year. This is much more than in previous years," the association said.

Egypt is also waiting for Europeans. It intends to launch the "long stay in winter" programme. The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities instructed local hoteliers to develop proposals for long-term stays of Europeans and urges hotels not to delay because Türkiye may attract all tourists.

Greece also has big plans for Europeans this winter. Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias has already held talks with the representatives of the hotel industry.

"However, Greece could not find so many places as Türkiye or Egypt did. About 1,000 rooms will be available for German tourists during the off-season. The Greek minister did not mention the fact that during the cold months most of the coastal hotels in Greece are closed, and those that will work will pay more than usual for heating, which means they will shift part of these costs to tourists," ATOR said.