Aug. 2 (UPI) — Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Wednesday his country would provide a free week’s holiday on the island of Rhodes in 2024 to anyone whose holiday had been curtailed by wildfires that have swept the island.
Mitsotakis made the offer in an interview with a British breakfast TV show as part of a campaign to restore international confidence in tourism in Greece, which has taken a hit from fires that saw 20,000 mainly British tourists evacuated, or sleeping on gymnasium and school floors.
“For all of those whose holidays were cut short as a result of the wildfires, the Greek government, in cooperation with the local authorities, will offer one week of free holidays on Rhodes next spring or next fall,” he said.
“Rhodes today is more welcoming than ever, the island is back to normal.”
The fires, which broke out July 18 in the midst of the peak summer holiday season, destroyed about one-tenth of the 540 square-mile island, wreaking havoc on the tourism on which it relies heavily.
By July 24 authorities were fighting the blazes from the ground and the air with eight aircraft deployed — two from Turkey and one from Croatia — as well as 10 helicopters, including three from Egypt.
British holiday firms suspended scheduled inbound operations to Rhodes and at the height of the fires were flying in up to five empty aircraft a day to evacuate stranded holidaymakers.
Tourism is highly important to the Greek economy, making up about 25% of GDP.
