More international visitors, higher tourism revenues and a short-term rental market seeking growth primarily through higher prices rather than increased occupancy make up the picture of Greek tourism in 2026.
The figures reveal a market that continues to grow, but at different rates depending on visitors’ countries of origin and the destinations they choose.
In inbound tourism, Germans, Italians and British travellers emerged as the main drivers during the January–August period, while France and the United States recorded declines in total arrivals, according to data from the Bank of Greece. At the same time, according to Hosthub’s analysis of more than 17,000 properties across Greece during the first nine months of 2026, the short-term rental market is improving its financial performance mainly through higher nightly rates, as occupancy remains almost unchanged.
Comparing the two sets of data highlights a crucial aspect of this year’s tourism season: an increase in visitor numbers does not automatically translate into a corresponding rise in property occupancy, while revenue growth does not always result from more overnight stays.
More arrivals, tourism revenues reach €18.2 billion
During January–August 2026, travel receipts in Greece increased by 9.4%, reaching €18.20 billion, compared with €16.64 billion during the same period in 2025. This growth was accompanied by a 10% increase in inbound visitor arrivals, reaching 28.51 million travellers, while average spending per trip remained almost unchanged.
Among the most important source markets, Italy recorded the strongest percentage increase, with arrivals rising by 22.1% to 1.92 million travellers. Arrivals from Germany increased by 8.1% to 4.21 million, while those from the United Kingdom rose by 3.9% to 3.40 million.
By contrast, arrivals from France declined by 5.4% to 1.35 million travellers, while arrivals from the United States fell by 1.5% to approximately 1.06 million.
The overall picture therefore remains positive, but performance varies by market. This variation is of particular interest to property managers, as the composition of demand, seasonality and travellers’ accommodation preferences are not the same across all destinations.
Short-term rentals benefit from higher prices
Hosthub’s analysis for January–September 2026, compared with the corresponding period in 2025, shows that the short-term rental market is increasing its revenues without any substantial change in occupancy.
More specifically, average occupancy nationwide stood at 34.85%, compared with 34.58% last year, recording a marginal increase of 0.8%. By contrast, the average nightly rate increased by 7.9%, from €112.68 to €121.55.
This development is reflected in the RevPAR metric, which measures revenue per available night and combines occupancy with the average nightly rate. RevPAR increased by 8.7%, from €38.96 to €42.36.
In other words, properties are achieving higher financial performance without being noticeably more occupied than last year. Higher prices are the main driver of growth in a market where the potential for further occupancy increases appears to vary significantly from one region to another.
This picture presents an interesting parallel development to the inbound tourism figures. While travel receipts are increasing by 9.4%, mainly thanks to higher visitor numbers, the 8.7% rise in short-term rental RevPAR is primarily linked to higher prices. Of course, the two indicators are not directly comparable, as they refer to different measures, periods and market samples.
Read more: Greece’s short-term rentals in 2026: Athens’ southern suburbs overtake the city centre
The key question for Greek tourism
A combined examination of inbound tourism and short-term rental data reveals two different sides of growth in 2026. At national level, the increase in arrivals is boosting travel receipts. In the short-term rental market, however, revenue growth is primarily driven by higher prices, while occupancy remains almost unchanged nationwide.
At the same time, differences between destinations are becoming more pronounced. Athens’ southern suburbs and the Cyclades are recording strong growth in performance, Thessaloniki is combining higher occupancy with higher prices, while central Athens is showing considerably more moderate growth.
Looking ahead, the question is not only how many tourists will visit Greece, but also how demand will be distributed among destinations and different types of accommodation. Equally important is whether the market will be able to maintain higher prices without losing occupancy.
This is because the increase in arrivals is a positive sign for Greek tourism, but it is not sufficient on its own to describe the performance of each individual market. In short-term rentals, the data suggests that the next phase of growth will depend not only on attracting visitors, but also on properties’ ability to convert demand into sustainable revenues.
