Telegraph readers vote Greece second most popular destination

The Telegraph Travel Awards 2008 and their poll of over 25,000 readers have placed Greece in second place in their Best European Country ranking, beating the traditional favourites of Portugal and Spain.

Greece's ranking ahead of Portugal and the traditional British holiday destination of Spain is an encouraging sign that the injection of €40 million by the country's Ministry of Tourism in 2008 is bearing fruit - with recent figures released by the National Statistical Service of Greece also showing that turnover in the tourism sector has increased by 2.7% in Q2 2008 compared to the same period in the previous year.

Recent visitor figures are also positive, showing that during January to September 2007 arrivals in Greece by UK tourists grew by 6.4% compared to the same period in 2006, according to the Greece Tourism Report Q3 2008. In addition to this, Greece is predicting 2.7% economic growth in 2009, when the majority of Europe is bracing itself for declines.

These figures confirm what many property investors have predicted. Greece is poised to successfully ride out the financial crisis, with its tourism sector proving resilient against a worldwide decline. This gives the property investor a means of realising their investment, be it with rentals or resales.

Buying overseas property will prove to be one of the more profitable investments of 2009, as stocks, shares and interest rates stumble. Knowing where to buy has never been more important but these encouraging announcements and figures are certainly a good indication that Greece's property market is set to flourish.

Robin Barrasford, Managing Director of the development company behind Halcyon Hills, a five star marina and spa resort on the thriving island of Samos, agrees with the positive figures and isn't surprised. "Greece has enjoyed a period of stable growth while other markets have mushroomed out of control with negative consequences. Greece's steady growth maintains a high demand for quality second home and investment properties, and ensures the property owner has a means of realising their investment if they decide to sell or rent their properties."

He continues, "Greece is a beautiful country, with an astounding wealth of history and a warm and welcoming people. It's no surprise that its popularity is increasing and out performing old favourites such as Spain. Greece is the perfect destination for those wanting to escape the doom and gloom of the financial crisis.'"

Robin Barrasford confirms that sales in the Halcyon Hills resort on the Greek island of Samos remain buoyant despite UK market doldrums and with the Greek government initiatives to actively increase tourism in Greece, the popularity of the Greek property market shows no signs of abating.

Source: TravelDailyNews