Greece will tighten the screw on the construction of new hotels.
Greece wants to curb mass tourism on its islands and in its busiest destinations. The government presented new rules on Monday to prevent the proliferation of large hotels and better protect beaches.
Last year, the country welcomed nearly 38 million tourists, a record. Islands like Mykonos and Santorini are stormed during the high season. At the same time, residents have been complaining for years about road chaos, water shortages, rising rents and overloading infrastructure.
At the heart of the new rules is a classification of regions according to tourist pressure. Stricter urban planning rules will be imposed in particular on very touristy islands such as Rhodes, Kos, Santorini and Mykonos. In island areas under heavy pressure, the new hotels will only have a maximum of 100 beds. Hotels located outside the official building areas can only be built on large plots. The government wants to prevent hotels from being installed in a disorderly manner in the landscape.
The Greek government also wants to better protect the coasts. Near the sea – there is an area of up to 25 meters from the shore – no new construction will in principle be authorized.
According to Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni, the goal is to move towards more sustainable tourism, with less pressure on the environment, beaches and infrastructure. The Minister of the Environment, Stavros Papastavrou, spoke of a « historic reform ».
The new rules are expected to come into force by the end of June.
source : le soir
