Greece joins Mediterranean race to win back tourists

Last year, the number of visitors to Greece plummeted by 78.2% to 7.4 million – from a record 34 million in 2019

Workers arrange sunbeds as others install umbrellas at Plaka beach on the Aegean island of Naxos, Greece. Picture: Thanassis Stavrakis/AP

Greece has launched its tourism season amid a competitive scramble across the Mediterranean to lure tourists emerging from lockdowns.

The European Union has yet to roll out its mobile phone-friendly travel pass system but southern member states, driven deeper into debt by the pandemic and highly dependent on tourism revenues, are not waiting.