The latest data for tourist arrivals in 2022, show that Cyprus tourism in now enhanced and more resilient, Deputy Minister of Tourism Savvas Perdios has told CNA, adding that the goal is for 2023 tourism revenue to surpass that of 2022.

Based on the data published on Tuesday by the Statistical Service of Cyprus, total tourist arrivals for the past year exceeded 3.2 million, corresponding to 80% of arrivals in 2019, a record year for Cypriot tourism despite the loss of the Russian market because of the war in Ukraine.

"The conclusion we can draw from last year is that our tourism is more resilient and that we are now entitled to say that Cypriot tourism does not depend on the Russian market," said Perdios.

He added that the diversification and strengthening of the resilience of Cypriot tourism was demonstrated by the results of 2022, especially in terms of revenues, which were at 90% of 2019 revenues. Cyprus, according to Perdios is in the top 20 countries worldwide in terms of revenue recovery compared to 2019.

As the UK market remains the backbone of Cyprus tourism, Perdios pointed out that there was also an increase in arrivals from EU countries and Israel.  He noted that 2022 was a year with record arrivals from Poland, France, Italy, Denmark, Austria and Hungary, while arrivals for Germany and Switzerland hit a 20-year high.

Compared to 2019, total arrivals from the EU were 24% up. Arrivals from Poland recorded a 133% increase, followed by France with 98%, Denmark with a 67% increase, Austria, Hungary and Italy with a 58% increase and Germany with an increase of 31%.

Perdios also said that 2023 starts with positive messages from the United Kingdom, where demand remains at the same levels as last year. However, as he explained, the flights from the UK will not exceed 30% of the total number of flights in 2023. During the summer season there will be 56 flights per week from Israel, 45 from Germany, 45 from Scandinavia, 34 from Poland, 25 from Austria, 24 from Italy, 22 from France, 20 from Switzerland, 20 from Serbia and 14 from Hungary. There are also expectations for flights to be launched from three cities in Saudi Arabia.

The Deputy Minister said that “based on the data we have in front of us today, it looks like we're going to outperform 2022 revenue” and added that revenue is likely to reach 2019 levels.  As he noted, over 50% of arrivals are from individual travellers, meaning that the per capita spend is higher compared to the spend in pre-paid packages.

At the end of the week Perdios will travel to the United States, where he will have contacts in Washington and in New York with tour operators, travel associations and the Diaspora and will make presentations to the media, aiming to increase tourist arrivals from the country.