• What is happening to the commercial – tourism Chania’s property market, and what are the most critical trends?
• The commercial property market in Crete and specifically for the Prefecture of Chania is nonetheless relatively healthy, with great prospects for the near future for those looking to buy an exceptional real estate asset in Crete.

Photo by Romy Rutten on Unsplash

Chania Property Market Tourism Trends & Hospitality Investments – 2020

According to the reports shared by several statistic organizations and governmental authorities in the next 10 years, the Greek tourism industry will be 10 times bigger. In 2009 the international tourist’s arrival increase by 14.9 million, and in 2016 it reached 24.8 million. Moreover, a recent report from the Bank of Greece said that growth in 2017 was 26 million and it will increase to 47 million by 2027.

According to Greece’s new Tourism Minister Harry Theoharis, Greece this summer is expected to break even greater records in tourism. Speaking to the media during the World Travel Market (WTM) 2019 expo, Minister Theoharis announced that this year tourism is closing on strong numbers and the ministry is looking towards the 2020 season with optimism. “With hard work and public-privatepartnerships, tourism in 2020 will break even more records in both quality and quantity,” Harry Theoharis said.

During a press conference held in Athens, the minister said that arrival numbers this year are showing an approximately three percent increase, compared to 2018, which according to data hit an astounding 33.1 million international visitors. “The quality, the sustainability and the authenticity of the Greek tourism product will form the basis of our new strategy,” Theoharis underlined.

Chania Tourism Property Investments Figures: The five most important markets for Greece in 2019, based on receipts ranking, are: Germany, the United Kingdom, the USA, France, and Italy. Together with Russia – which, even though its potential has markedly decreased in recent years, is very important for certain regions and records a high per capita spend – these six countries account for 41.5% of visits, 49.7% of overnights and 52.2% of travel receipts in Greece.

Crete is most often visited by tourists from Germany. Over 1.4 million German tourists visited the island in 2018, ranking Germany as Crete’s biggest travel market by far. Other visitors include those from France, the UK and the Netherlands.According to the SETE Institute (INSETE), the research department of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE); Athens, Thessaloniki, Fira on Santorini, as well as Georgioupolis and Rethymno on Crete, are among the most popular tourist destinations among German vacationers in the spring of the last year. British tourists prefer Athens, Fira, and Imerovigli on Santorini, Corfu, and Thessaloniki.

The fact that Georgioupolis is one of the top destinations preferred by German tourists is not a surprise: in this area with a strong tradition in welcoming vacationers from this part of the European mainland, German vacationers feel at ease and find the best facilities and amenities for a comfortable stay including high-class facilities

Two years ago – on March 2018 – we published a research document about the prospects of small properties in the Prefecture of Chania and the opportunities behind a purchase of such a property type. We spotted the most important areas in Chania where some small properties were available and suggested useful and strategic tips for those interested to buy a small property.

Two years later such real estate opportunities are truly rare in the property market of Chania, Crete. Additionally, our research revealed that a significant number of buyers from Scandinavia, Israel and Germany proceeded to such purchases and appeared happy with their deals in general.

Bank of Greece data show that the pace of growth has been increasing, starting from 0.5 percent and reaching up to 7.9 percent, which was the national expansion rate in April-August 2019 on an annual basis.

According to our Chania real estate dedicated research team demand for properties in Chania is stronger and prices shot up at an annual rate of 3.8 percent in Q1. The prices are remaining 30-35% lower than the rates recorded during the property boom of the 2002-2007 period –  however -there are among the highest in Greece.  In Rethymnon, prices rose 5.0 percent in the summer, while in other major areas of Crete the increase reached 5.4 percent and in the rest of the country it came to approximately 5.0 percent.

Germans, who represent a significant portion of visitors used to stay longer in Greece, but reduced their trips by approximately 3 days since 2007, whilst visitors from the UK, Italy and France by 1.4 -1.6 days The top countries in terms of length of stay are non-European (Australia, USA, Russia) mainly because to travel distance. Historically, independent travellers stay for longer and it seems that the length of stay has stabilized. In the case of packaged tours, their average has been significantly increased in 2019 after a big drop in 2016 and remained roughly 1.5 to 2 days less than that of independent travellers.

The bulk of expenditure goes to accommodation services and food expenditure, while transportation is the next larger expense of tourists with the most revenue directed in sea transport then road and the least being air transport. Destinations, like South Aegean, Crete and Ionian islands, where foreign tourists prevail, are more expensive. Destinations driven mainly by domestic demand lie below the average daily spent North Aegean, Central Macedonia and East Macedonia & Thrace attract lower budget foreign tourists.

Chania Tourism Property Investments & Trends

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Date of publication: February – March 2020