The Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, promised to give tourists a free week’s rest. So he decided to compensate for the ruined vacation of travelers who fled the resort due to the recent devastating forest fires on the island of Rhodes, and even now, when the situation has more or less normalized, do not want to go there, British media reported.
It will be recalled that in July of this year more than 20,000 people, including tourists, were evacuated due to the threat of fire caused by the heat and strong wind. Many British travelers had to cut short their holidays and return home on evacuation flights.
In an interview with ITV’s Good Morning Britain program, the Greek Prime Minister said that Rhodes is aware of the problems caused to tourists due to force majeure and is ready to fill the vacation of the British if they were fleeing the island instead of a full-fledged rest. According to him, victims can take advantage of the offer in the spring or fall of 2024. At the same time, he did not provide details about how the scheme will work.
“No one has died on Rhodes and no injuries have been reported… We understand that guests have been inconvenienced, but I am happy to inform you that Rhodes is more welcoming than ever. The island has already returned to normal,” he noted and added that Greece is in “absolute security.”
Some Greeks criticized Mitsotakis’ initiative on social media, saying the government should focus on helping residents who lost their homes and property in the fires. “No paid hotel day for residents, Greeks and immigrants who lost their homes all over Greece and slept in ruins,” “Greeks may not go on vacation, but they (officials) will pay for the vacation of foreigners,” they complained.
At the same time, the opposition party “SYRIZA” also issued a statement and expressed dissatisfaction with the Prime Minister’s new proposal. Their opinion is that free holidays for tourists will not solve the problem, so more serious measures should be taken to protect tourism in Greece.
Forest fires on Rhodes and other Greek islands have become part of a wider problem related to climate change. A recent report by the European Commission highlighted that global warming could affect tourism in southern Europe. Greece will also suffer, as it depends on the tourism sector – 20% of its GDP comes from tourism, and Rhodes, which was on fire in July of this year like never before, until now was among the top 100 best tourist destinations in the world.