Tourist arrivals in Cyprus could fall by close to 40% in April, topping the 31% drop recorded in March, according to Haris Papacharalambous, President of the Cyprus Association of Travel and Tourist Agents (ACTTA).
Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency, Papacharalambous said the full-year decline in arrivals was expected to reach between 10% and 15%. He forecast that by September and October the monthly drop would narrow to around 5–7%, provided no further negative developments occurred.
He described the current situation as “a cocktail of things, all working against tourism, especially for Cyprus,” citing rising fuel costs, political uncertainty around the United Kingdom — Cyprus’s largest source market — and a reduction in available airline seats to the island. While demand had also softened, he said the seat reduction was pushing up ticket prices.
Papacharalambous said ACTTA was in continuous contact with its partners, adding: “We are constantly pushing anything that can attract tourism and send good news abroad — offers, new programmes.” He said the association expected the monthly year-on-year decline to ease as the season progressed, as long as conditions did not deteriorate further.
He noted that bookings across Europe had weakened in recent days, with a partial shift towards domestic tourism. Travellers were also showing a strong preference for last-minute bookings. “That is how we will get through the year,” he said.
On outbound travel, Papacharalambous said Cypriots appeared determined to travel despite higher airfares. “We may not reach the threshold of almost two million trips by Cyprus residents, but we will not see serious deviations from last year’s figure,” he told CNA.
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