Cheap airplane tickets or cheap vacation packages are not so cheap when tourists end up getting stranded in the country they are visiting because of circumstances outside of their control, such as flights being cancelled due to volcanic ash forcing the cancelation of flights. In an effort to boost its tourism, Greece has announced that it will guarantee to pay any extra room and board if visitors are unable to leave the country because of local strikes or natural disasters.
Greece is currently dealing with a major budget and debt crises. To qualify for rescue loans from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, the Greek government had to agree to slash pensions and civil service pay, while increasing consumer taxes.
Greek unions responded with a series of strikes which resulted in the cancelation of flights, ferry, rail services and halted public transportation.
Tourism is a critical source of Greek revenue, contributing more than 15 percent of its gross domestic product and one in five jobs. Greece has experienced a decline in oversees bookings of about 12 percent this year. Protests in May against the painful austerity measures became violent which in turn negatively impacted future tourist plans.
Tourist arrivals were disrupted earlier this year because of the eruption of a volcano in Iceland, which spewed huge amounts of ash into the air for days, blocking air routes.
Greece hopes that its tourist guarantee will reassure potential visitors and help turnaround its negative tourist trend.
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