Chalkidiki and Kefalonia in Greece are among Daily Mail’s top choices for 2016 beach breaks.
The British newspaper mentions that Thomas Cook recently announced that holiday bookings for this summer are being ‘put on hold’ by consumers following terrorist attacks in Paris and Istanbul in the following article:
Industry experts reckon that fears about security, already elevated after previous attacks in Egypt and Tunisia, have persuaded some to delay their booking; while others have already decided to switch their booking to ‘safer’ destinations.
The TUI group has said that its summer bookings to Turkey have already fallen by 40 per cent.
In Roman times, fortune-tellers would claim to be able to predict the future by observing the flights of birds. The theory was that if the Gods had something to tell us, they would send an avian message in the sky.
When it comes to predicting the future, the travel business may just as well try studying the passage of geese – because you can be sure that the events of the next six months will defy any logical prediction.
Anxiety about bomb attacks
Trying to work out why people aren’t booking holidays in Turkey probably has much more to do with other considerations than simply anxiety about bomb attacks in Istanbul and Ankara (there were other serious bomb attacks in Turkey last year, none of these, however, was reckoned to have damaged tourism).
Bad things happen in good holiday places; they always have done and always will. British travellers have become adept at working out the potential risk relative to the price of a holiday. Most of us know that while we worry about terrorism, you are much more likely to be killed on holiday in a road accident – or drowning at sea through a moment’s carelessness. While operators are taking the precaution of trimming capacity to Turkey, there will almost certainly be surplus capacity this summer, which will lead to discounting – and we’ll all reconsider the risks.
At the moment nobody is happy to take the risk in Tunisia or in Egypt’s Red Sea resorts (though since travel companies have dropped both destinations, this decision has been taken from us).
For the tour operators, the anxieties about booking foreign holidays is a mixed blessing. On the one hand anything that discourages potential holidaymakers is a bad thing – on the other the situation is likely to push people towards booking a package, something that gives extensive consumer protection and support.
If you haven’t yet booked a summer holiday, the newspaper’s guide to destinations worth thinking about includes two destinations in Greece, Chalkidiki and Kefalonia and describes them as follows:
Halkidiki
All-inclusive resort Ikos Oceania is on mainland Greece, a stone’s throw from Thessaloniki airport. Like the Abama in Tenerife, this is a five-star resort that offers a Caribbean-style experience but is just a few hours flight from the UK.
Smart touches at Ikos Oceania include a sea-view infinity pool, a long private beach and extensive water sports. There’s a big choice of places to eat and drink, and after-dinner options include live shows and a nightclub.
Thomson (thomson.co.uk) offers seven-night packages from £1,096pp.
Kefalonia
Which is the perfect Greek island? Mykonos? Santorini? Skopelos? I would place Kefalonia at the top of the list. It’s stunningly pretty and never overcrowded. Unique Kefalonia Villas (uniquekefalonia.com) offers a stunning range of properties with pools that provide the perfect base for exploring this wonderful island.
The spectacular Villa Zeus Temple in Lourdas sleeps up to eight people and costs from around £2,500 per week – but other properties are available from £500 per week.
The rest of the list includes:
- Tenerife
- Pollenca
- Palma de Mallorca
- Nice
- Tossa de Mar
- Amalfi
- Lagos
Read more here.
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
