How sustainable tourism V Insular part of Greecewhen the quantity travel beds reaches from equal to three to four times the number of permanent residents? The problem is no longer limited to the “very” touristic islands like Mykonos and Santorini, but seems to be centered on the Cyclades, including some smaller islands that were considered “alternative destinations” and where the problem is just as explosive. And all this without taking into account Airbnb-style short-term rentals, with listings on many islands ranging from hundreds to several thousand.

“K” combined the 2021 Census data., which were made public this year, with the latest annual report of the Institute for Tourism Research and Forecasting (ITEP) of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (2022) and available data on room rentals (2019, Confederation of Tourism Accommodation Entrepreneurs Greece) and camping (ESYE 2021). For the Cyclades and Dodecanese, registration data was also used. Airbnb (from the Inside Airbnb website), assuming that each listing corresponds to two beds (in reality, of course, there may be more). For the purposes of the report, all the islands were examined, except for Crete and Evia.

What does data analysis show? Five islands have three times more beds than the permanent population: Mykonos 3.7 beds per inhabitant, Santorini 3.42, Folegandros 3.16, Io 3.07, Antiparos 3.03. This means that during the peak tourist season, the population of these islands more than triples (because the workers and those living on the island in general, except for tourists, are not permanent residents).

Six more islands have more than two beds per inhabitant: Skiathos 2.68 beds per inhabitant, Serifos 2.67, Sifnos 2.62, Amorgos 2.51, Thassos 2.13 and Sikinos 2.1 . Finally, more than one bed per inhabitant corresponds to Kos (1.74), Kea (1.73), Agistri (1.68), Skopelos (1.63), Milos (1.66), Astypalea (1.61), Kythnos (1.56), Tilos (1.48). , Zakynthos (1.41), Karpathos (1.36), Alonissos (1.29), Patmos (1.27), Naxos (1.23), Anafi (1.18), Tinos (1.12), Poros (1.07) and Rhodes (1.01).

Infrastructure

On the other hand, Salamina (total 105 places for tourists with a permanent population of 37,220 inhabitants) and the north of the Aegean: Chios (0.11 places per inhabitant), Psara (0.12), Lesvos (0.15), Fourni (0 .21), Lemnos (0.22).

“Of course, we cannot judge the degree of load on the island only by the number of tourist places per permanent resident. It is necessary to consider how each island is developed for tourism, i.e. whether it has the infrastructure to receive a large number of tourists, and, of course, its size. However, these data confirm the continuation of the trend that we have seen in recent years: the number of beds in the tourist developed islands of the Cyclades, Dodecanese and Ionian Islands continues to increase, while in the northern Aegean, despite the efforts made in recent decades in tourism development are still lagging behind. In addition, we see that small islands are under more and more pressure,” says Haris Kokkosis, Professor Emeritus of Spatial Planning at the University of Thessaly.

“We have seen many luxury resorts both in Greece and abroad degrade,” says Yannis Spilanis, a professor at the University of the Aegean.

According to Mr. Kokkosis, tourism has been changing its face in recent years. “Tourism is moving into a more corporate form when the destination is managed through the international market, breaking free from the control of local societies. At the same time, very high pressure is exerted through it. real estate and Airbnb, creating problems, especially in small local communities. The question is whether new opportunities appear in connection with the development of modern forms of tourism, i.e. activities related to the alternative product and extend the length of the season. And if it creates opportunities to empower islands whose populations are declining.”

Geographically, access complexity still plays a role. “There is a spread of tourist pressure from the highly developed tourist islands to neighboring ones, while the more distant islands remain far from the Cyclades ‘madness’ for now.”

“The problem of hypertourism has two aspects. One concerns the issue of capacity, if natural resources are sufficient. And the second is about how people experience what is happening. Interestingly, despite the development of tourism, on most of the islands we are seeing a decrease in the population according to the latest census,” says Yannis Spilanis, professor at the University of the Aegean and director of the Aegean Observatory for Sustainable Tourism. “Now you can see the risk of discrediting a large number of islands and the coastal zone. We have seen many luxury resorts, both in Greece and abroad, downgrade – it’s just that everyone thinks they will always be at the top.”

“strategic error”

The “overload” of some areas continues even as the sirens get louder. “While development laws have been more subsidizing tourism investment in the North Aegean since the 1990s, investment is still directed to already saturated areas,” says Mr Spilanis. “This is a strategic mistake to stop subsidizing tourism investment on saturated islands and step up the modernization of existing old hotel facilities.”

In fact, a strategic investment has recently been approved in Mykonos, while a new investment proposal has been submitted for another strategic investment… in an undeveloped part of the island. In Santorini, the Ministry of Development is considering a proposal to build a complex of 83 tourist houses (67 ground and 16 underground) with 83 swimming pools, which includes a 2500 sqm revitalization center, buildings for hotel functions, cultural events on an area of ​​110 acres in the area of ​​Platinamos Vlychada. It is also considering a proposal for a 15-villa hotel in Ermionides, which has received a large number of tourism investment approvals in recent years.

According to Mr. Spilanis, a debate needs to be opened about whether building so many large-scale tourism investments is sustainable. “We need tourism with high added value. The tourism industry today calls the construction of huge projects with hotels, residences, swimming pools and golf courses sustainable development because they have a low construction rate. This model is not only unsustainable, but also does not offer the country in the long run. In my opinion, we need to change our approach, especially in insular Greece and the coastal zone. Highlighting the characteristics of places, landscapes, nature, cultural creativity – this is what we should invest in. Luxury is not sustainable, but authenticity is sustainable.”

“Tourism is moving into a form where management is out of control of the local community,” emphasizes Haris Kokkosis, professor emeritus at the University of Thessaly.

“The discussion should start immediately,” says Mr. Kokkosis. “We need to discuss other governance so that local communities can function satisfactorily. In the Cyclades this is a big problem as many places seem to be losing their identity. The discussion must be impartial. Can you tell society that it should be left behind because you like to see it that way when you visit it? Can you freeze time? No. But you can keep some elements of individuality: scale, architecture, landscape. Otherwise, you will become like everyone else.”

“We need a discussion in a positive way that will cover all issues,” says Mr. Spilanis. “The new tourism narrative must be built on solid foundations. However, for this discussion to take place, the State must stop what is happening with real estate, so that we do not have irreversible situations and that local communities do not lose control of their island. For example, it should immediately ban off-plan development on the islands, and at the same time, the Treasury should stop taxing pastures and land as building plots so that their owners are not forced to sell them.