First measures to combat overtourism
At the end of a record season in 2024 (35 million tourists), Prime Minister Mitsotakis declared: "Greece does not have a problem with overtourism However, this statement was accompanied by measures against... overtourism. For some sites have become too crowded, with adverse effects on the environment and the cost of living for local residents. In Santorini, it's the cruise ship passengers who are being targeted: each of them must now pay €20. The situation is urgent: more than 800 cruise ships dock here every year, sometimes disembarking 10,000 passengers a day - as many as live on the volcanic island. An identical tax should be applied to Mykonos, where the crowds of cruise passengers swell the already overcrowded ranks of ordinary holidaymakers on the "party island". Another measure: a freeze on Airbnb-style holiday rentals in Athens for at least a year. By 2025, no new tourist apartment licenses are to be issued in the center of the capital. For similar accommodations already in existence, Mitsotakis announces an increase in the price of the license. But the damage has already been done: in the neighborhoods around the Acropolis, the number of tourist accommodations has exploded. As a result, it's almost impossible for Athenians to find a long-term lease. This is evidenced by entire streets where "Airbnb" key boxes (code locks containing a key for guests) stand side by side with anti-tourist banners and graffiti. Generally speaking, overtourism has become an issue in Greece since the 2010s. Certain sites such as Athens, Corfu, Rhodes and parts of the Cyclades and Peloponnese are far too busy (and too expensive) in summer. The problem is that the authorities are counting on a steady rise in the number of foreign tourists to keep the economy going. However, there are alternatives: develop off-season offers, limit new construction, apply quotas on islands, support ecotourism, etc.
The burning issue of fires
"Can I cancel my booking because of the fires?" It's a question asked by more and more tourists coming to Greece. Every summer, major fires ravage the country, and all regions are now at risk (see "Environment"). It's possible to get a refund on your plane ticket or hotel reservation, but it's often difficult. It depends on your insurance, on the random assessment of a real danger, on the conditions of sale of airlines, travel agencies and so on. As a result, you may find yourself staying in a risk-free hotel surrounded by flame-blackened landscapes, or having to evacuate in a tractor trailer in the middle of the night when a new fire suddenly breaks out. In Greece, the major fires are largely due to global warming. But the Greek state also bears its share of responsibility: lack of preventive action, failure to maintain at-risk areas, insufficient investment in fire-fighting... The main victims are the Greeks themselves: around half of those affected have no insurance. So much so that, in the final analysis, the financial issue for the authorities is not fire prevention, but the release of special funds to provide a minimum level of compensation to residents who have lost their homes, hotels, herds, etc.
Tensions with Turkey
Since its creation in 1923, Turkey has maintained a complicated relationship with Greece, sometimes to the point of confrontation, as during the 1974 Cyprus crisis, but also with moments of calm, as in 1999, when the two states helped each other out after severe earthquakes. But when Recep Erdoğan came to power in Ankara in 2003, relations deteriorated. While old quarrels over Cyprus or border demarcation persist, new hot-button issues have emerged. Since 2015, Greece has accused Turkey of trying to destabilize it by letting too many migrants through. And the failed coup d'état against Erdoğan in 2016 has made matters even worse. Indeed, Ankara's strongman is demanding the return of the hundreds of military personnel and opponents welcomed back by Greece. But it should be noted that both countries are members of Nato, and that Turkey is a key economic partner for Greece (3rd client, 9th supplier). As for the two peoples, who are very close culturally, they generally enjoy good relations. In 2024, a record number of Turkish tourists visited Greece: over 370,000 on the islands of Lesbos, Chios and Samos alone.
A lack of interest in the Balkans
The resolution of the twenty-seven-year-old conflict over the name of Northern Macedonia in 2018 should not obscure the fact that Greece has only very distant relations with its three European Balkan neighbors. Moreover, the Prespa agreement signed with Skopje, poorly digested by the majority of Greeks, cost Alexis Tsipras his post as Prime Minister in 2019. It has to be said that the Greeks know little about their neighbors, visiting them most often only to ski in Bulgaria, gamble at the casino on the border with Northern Macedonia and... illegally import cannabis from Albania. As for (legal) trade, it remains low, even with Bulgaria, the only other EU member in the region. Worse still, Athens has theoretically been at war with Tirana since 1941. The fact that no agreement has been signed to put an end to this absurdity demonstrates Greece's lack of interest in the Balkans. Since the end of the socialist regimes in 1991, Athens has lost many opportunities to appear as a "big brother" to its neighbors with fragile democracies. A rapprochement now seems only possible thanks to ambitious European projects, such as the integration of Albania and Northern Macedonia into the EU. Such an initiative would have the advantage of opening up Greece, still isolated in southeastern Europe.
The delicate equation of demography
Greece is facing both a population decline and an influx of refugees. In theory, the arrival of new inhabitants should make up for the drop in births and the exodus of Greeks (to Germany in particular). In fact, this is already more or less the case, with entire sectors relying on foreign labor: agriculture, fishing, construction, etc. But things aren't quite as simple as that. But things aren't quite that simple. Since the 2009 crisis, there has been a sharp rise in far-right parties and ideas. The question also depends on the immigrants themselves: do they want to stay in Greece? For the Albanians who arrived in the 1990s, the answer is "yes", and they have proved it by rapidly blending into society. But for the 50,000 to 100,000 Afghans, Syrians and Somalis who arrive in Greece every year, the answer is "no" in 92% of cases. If they stay and work here - often in inhumane conditions - it's because they have no choice, dreaming, themselves, of Germany or America. Since 2023, an easier-to-obtain residence permit has been issued to encourage them to stay. After all, Greece has to find a balance between the time bomb of financing its pensions and the need to maintain its population. As the population ages, solutions must be rapid and multiple: not only integrate new inhabitants, but also bring back the young Greeks who have left for Northern Europe.
