Reduced by up to 15% are the hotel bookings for the summer season, according to the Pan-Cyprian Hotel Association (PASYXE), which continually assesses the data.

In statements to Brief, PASYXE's General Manager, Filokypros Rousounidis, commenting on tourist arrivals for the first two months of the year, emphasized that “the increase observed in January and February tourist arrivals is modest and not significant enough to overturn the current data we have before us.”

He said, “At PASYXE, we are seeing a slowdown in bookings for the summer, particularly from April onwards, during the first three months of the year, compared to the same period last year.”

Responding to a relevant question, Mr. Rousounidis mentioned that "based on the indications so far, there appears to be a variation in bookings compared to last year, ranging from 5% to 15% in some cases, varying from business to business and from province to province. This variation might not be reflected in the current tourism data, but it will definitely become clearer in the next quarter, where we expect the gap between this year's and last year's tourism season to widen."

These indications, he stressed, "are based on the data, I repeat, that we currently have before us, taking into account specific factors."

Regarding factors indicating that this year might not perform at the same level as last year, Mr. Rousounidis explained that "our indications are related both to cancellations of some flights that have already occurred and to the slowdown in bookings from some key markets for Cypriot tourism."

Possibly, the General Manager of PASYXE estimated, “we might not be in a position to cover the gap that is being created, however, there are unpredictable factors. We are evaluating the situation on a weekly basis and believe that at this moment, no one can make a safe prediction about how the year will unfold. However, yes, there are factors, which we are evaluating, to see how much they can affect the tourism industry,” he pointed out.

"Such factors include the major recession in the UK, the main market for tourism, the energy and economic crisis in Germany, the Olympic Games in France, the European Championship, as well as the war in Israel, which already significantly affects us," added Mr. Rousounidis.

It is worth mentioning that, according to the data recently published by the Statistical Service, tourist arrivals in February 2024 amounted to 125,034 compared to 119,081 in February 2023, marking an increase of 5.0%.

For the period January - February 2024, tourist arrivals amounted to 212,995 compared to 209,630 for the same period in 2023, showing an increase of 1.6%.

It should be noted that the tourist arrivals in the first two months of 2024 are also higher compared to the corresponding period of 2019, a record year for Cypriot tourism, where five years ago they had reached 187,541. That is, there is an increase of 13.6% compared to 2019.