As Omicron variant case numbers increase around the world, Greece and Cyprus brace over a new threat that could potentially harm their recovering tourism industry.
Compared to other countries in Europe Greece and Cyprus, appear to have lower vaccination rates, DBRS Morningstar highlighted in a lengthy report published on Thursday.
The Canada-based rating agency stressed that travel in Southern Europe showed encouraging signs of recovery during the summer of 2021, especially in Greece. However, with Greece’s tourism heavily reliant on arrivals from Germany, France and the Russian market, the emergence of Omicron could pose challenges as the country prepares for its 2022 tourism period.
“DBRS Morningstar expects the tourism sector to continue on a recovery path in 2022, with the epidemiological situation not only in Europe but also globally playing an important role. The emergence of the Omicron variant has raised concerns and shows clearly that the virus will continue to pose risks to international tourism unless a high rate of effective vaccination globally is reached,” said Spyridoula Tzima, assistant vice president at DBRS Morningstar.
“Perceptions of a threat of wider restrictions on travel between EU and non-EU markets could stall the recovery for the remainder of the year, but this is mitigated by the fact that the majority of tourism flows are intra-European,” she explained.
“With the summer season behind us, the better-than-expected recovery in tourism to Greece and Cyprus should help them recover part of the lost ground,” said DBRS Morningstar Vice President Javier Rouillet.