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ELSTAT
OrganisationGR

ELSTAT

Greece's national statistics office; its final 2025 tourism data quantifies overtourism concentrated in three regions.

ELSTAT published Greece's final 2025 tourism figures on 27 July 2026: 38.2 million arrivals and 156.3 million overnight stays, concentrated in three regions even as short-let curbs stay confined to two cities.

Last refreshed: 28 July 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic

Key Question

Do Greece's short-let curbs even touch the regions taking half its tourists?

Timeline for ELSTAT

#12 26 Jul

Published final 2025 accommodation arrivals and overnight-stay figures

Nomads & Communities: Greece's freezes miss half its nights
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Background

ELSTAT, the Hellenic Statistical Authority, is Greece's national statistics office and the publisher of the country's official tourism data. Its final 2025 figures, released on 27 July 2026, are the primary source for measuring how tourist activity is distributed across Greece's thirteen administrative regions .

Because ELSTAT's REMIT is measurement rather than policy, its data is used by multiple sides of the short-let debate: the Greek Ministry of Tourism cites its rising totals as evidence of sector health, while critics of the current restriction regime use the same regional breakdown to argue the curbs are misplaced .

Its figures are the durable reference point for any future extension of short-let policy beyond Athens and Thessaloniki, since any such move will be judged against the regional shares ELSTAT itself established.

Key Issues
Tourism data

Data exposes Greece's regulatory gap

ELSTAT's final 2025 figures, published 27 July 2026, showed 38.2 million arrivals (up 2.8 per cent) and 156.3 million overnight stays (up 2.2 per cent), with international visitors accounting for 73.8 per cent of arrivals and 83.8 per cent of overnight stays, Germany leading EU-origin arrivals and the UK leading non-EU European arrivals .

For ELSTAT, the release is what turns a policy debate into a measurable one: its own regional breakdown is the evidence now being used to show that Greece's short-let restrictions, confined to Athens and Thessaloniki, cover only a fraction of where the tourist nights actually fall.

Common Questions
How many tourists visited Greece in 2025?
ELSTAT recorded 38.2 million arrivals and 156.3 million overnight stays in its final 2025 figures, both up on 2024.Source: ELSTAT
Where do most tourists in Greece go?
The South Aegean and Crete together took 39.5 per cent of arrivals and 49.3 per cent of overnight stays in 2025.Source: ELSTAT
When is peak tourist season in Greece?
Summer, from July to October, took 56.7 per cent of annual arrivals, with August alone taking 19 per cent and hotel occupancy peaking at 81.3 per cent.Source: ELSTAT
Where do most of Greece's foreign tourists come from?
Germany led EU-origin arrivals at 12.7 per cent and the UK led non-EU European arrivals at 16.4 per cent in 2025.Source: ELSTAT
Why don't Greece's short-let bans cover most tourists?
Athens and Thessaloniki's short-let restrictions cover only around a quarter of national arrivals, while the South Aegean and Crete, taking almost half of overnight stays, have none.Source: ELSTAT