Although this Christmas is rocking the COVID-19 pandemic, the mood of people who were locked down at such a time last year is to travel and enjoy the holidays.

Hotels and hostels have put on their festive attire and are waiting to welcome their guests.

It is noteworthy that in some areas the abundance has already skyrocketed.

Like in Ioannina, where the Deputy Mayor of Tourism George Lolis said: “The Christmas season is already almost 80% filled” with “minimal cancellations that will be replaced immediately”.

Ioannina has been following an upward tourist trend recently, which Lolis says is due to the city’s multiculturalism as the elements of coexistence between Christians, Muslims and Jews are alive on every corner.

At the same time, as he pointed out, there are hotels in the area to suit all budgets, including “very good 5-star hotels and boutiques” which have obviously increased the level of service.

Visitors can be guided to museums, caves, archaeological sites and of course the island of Ioannina, but also enjoy the route to the city’s famous lake on foot.

“Rain” of reserves also in Zagorochoria

A few kilometers away in Zagorochoria, reservations for Christmas and New Year’s Eve are high.

“For Christmas and New Years, I believe that the hotel and hostel occupancy rates in the area will reach 100%,” said the deputy mayor for tourism of the Zagori municipality, Ioannis Tsaparis.

The area is ready to receive waves of tourists, although fears remain that something will happen to the pandemic and people will eventually stop traveling.

“Business people in the area have these fears and reservations, but they have all taken steps to be okay with their customers and be protected from the coronavirus,” Tsaparis said, adding that there were concerns about the unvaccinated. .

“There are many unvaccinated people who want to come. And that’s an issue.

“What I do know is that hoteliers and shopkeepers won’t accept them indoors. There is this problem.

“After the huge traffic we had on October 28th, the result was seen a few weeks later,” he said.

According to the deputy mayor, Zagorochoria is an attraction for its beauty and natural landscape.

“It is chosen by people who hike, that is, they are looking for ways and means, people who want to get closer to nature,” he said.

“There are also families who want to have a good time in a picturesque area.

“Our area also has impressive architecture that leaves no visitor untouched – it is one of the few parts of Greece that retains the color of traditional architecture.

“Visitors who come will see many stone-built bridges, stone-built cobblestone streets, traditional shops selling various products, etc.”

50% bookings in Pieria

The Pieria mountain range, which also has a ski center, is another favorite to visit over Christmas and is easily accessible by road.

Pieria Hoteliers’ president, Iraklis Tsitlakidis, said the occupancy rate for hotels and hostels in the area is currently around 50%.

“The reservations are around 50%.

“There are also reservations without advance payment, which means that depending on the epidemiological picture of both the region and the country and the type of remittances, the reservations can be canceled.

“After all, we are only talking about Christmas at the moment, only for 2-3 days, and that cannot save the companies in the mountain region with increased operating costs.”

Prices in the region can vary depending on the hotel and hostel category and, as Tsitlakidou explained, start at 40-50 euros per night, but “can be up to 200 euros”.

For Tsitlakidis “the accommodation, the food, the entertainment and the transport, that is the overall package for Pieria as a whole, are in a very fair evaluation for the visitor”.

“It’s very easy to visit, we’re at a transportation hub and our mountain region has a very good road network,” he concluded.

Minimum reservations in Arachova tou Vorras

DESTINATIONS Agios Athanasios: Escape to

In the old Agios Athanasios, which is only 10 kilometers from the ski center Vora or Kaimaktsalan and is known as the “Arachova of the North”, the traffic is still low.

Nikos Kountouridia owns two hotel units in the village.

One reason for the low booking rate over the Christmas season is that, according to Kountouridia, the pandemic is causing “people to move at the last minute”.

In any case, his hotels are ready and working in compliance with all hygiene protocols.

CONTINUE READING: Travel to Greece for Christmas and winter. Greek City Times got you covered.