Greek tourism gathered significant momentum in the first four months of 2026, with travel revenues and arrivals far outstripping the same period of 2025.
Greece's tourism sector enjoyed a strong first four months of 2026, with travel receipts and arrivals moving to clearly higher levels compared with the same period in 2025.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
In April 2026, the travel balance posted a surplus of €735.9 million, up from €697.3 million in April 2025. Travel receipts rose by 9.5%, reaching €1.11 billion, from €1.02 billion a year earlier.
The increase was mainly driven by a 10.6% rise in inbound travel flows, despite a slight 1% drop in average spending per trip.
The picture over the first four months is even more striking. The travel balance surplus jumped to €1.66 billion from €1.05 billion in the same period of 2025, an increase of more than 58%.
Travel receipts were up by €752.9 million, or 36.9%, reaching €2.79 billion, while travel payments rose by 14% to €1.13 billion.
Strong rise in arrivals: Which markets are choosing Greece
The rise in revenues was accompanied by a sharp increase in arrivals. Inbound travel reached 5.24 million visitors from January to April, up 27.1% from 4.12 million in the same period of 2025. The increase in arrivals via land border crossings was particularly pronounced, soaring by 67.8%, while air traffic grew by 12.8%.
Receipts from EU countries increased by 38.7% to €1.37 billion, while those from non-EU countries rose by 37.5%, reaching €1.34 billion.
Similarly, arrivals from EU countries were up 36.1%, while arrivals from the rest of the world increased by 18.3%.
At market level, Italy stood out, with revenues increasing by 57.5% in the four-month period and arrivals up 21.6%. The United Kingdom also made a particularly strong contribution, with travel receipts reaching €331.7 million and travel flows rising by 51%. France also posted positive figures, with revenues up 12.6% and arrivals up 14.1%.
The figures confirm the strong start to this year’s tourism season, with the sector recording double-digit growth in both arrivals and revenues, giving a significant boost to the services balance and the Greek economy as a whole.
