Greece confirms summit meeting on tourist safety
Greece’s tourism officials insists the country has no intention of setting up out-of-town zones for rowdy British holidaymakers despite newspaper reports.
According to The Guardian, ‘ghettos’ were being considered by the mayor of Malia following the fatal stabbing of a British youth in his resort in Crete last week.
Zacharias Doxastakis apparently told the newspaper that he would be meeting mayors of other major resorts in Zakynthos, Corfu, Rhodes and Kos in October to discuss how best to contain rowdy groups of visitors.
However, the Greece National Tourism Office in London said tourist ghettos would not be created.
It said the mayors were planning a summit meeting with the British ambassador to Greece later this year to discuss ways to protect tourists, but he said creating special tourist zones to contain youngsters was not on the agenda.
"This type of tourist has been coming to Greece for 30 years and not just Greece but also Magaluf and other countries too, and this is not a problem, not even in Malia," said a spokesman.
He said Crete as a whole attracted 330,000 visitors last year with only a small number of incidents reported.
He admitted some resorts that have a party reputation might need to take some steps to curb the behaviour of young revellers, but he said they wouldn’t be barred from resort centres.
by Linsey McNeill
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
In Italy, the Meloni government congratulates itself for its tourism achievements