According to provisional data from the Bank of Greece, the travel balance in April 2026 showed a surplus of 735.9 million euros, compared with a surplus of 697.3 million euros in the same month of 2025.
Specifically, tourism receipts rose by 9.5% in April 2026, reaching 1,114.6 million euros compared to 1,017.7 million euros in the same month of 2025, while travel payments also rose by 18.2% (April 2026: 378.8 million euros; April 2025: 320.4 million euros).
The increase in travel receipts is attributable to a 10.6% rise in inbound travel, as the average expenditure per trip decreased by 1.0%. Net receipts from the provision of travel services offset 31.5% of the goods account deficit and accounted for 80.5% of total net receipts from services.
During the January–April 2026 period, the travel balance posted a surplus of 1,664.3 million euros, compared with a surplus of 1,049.9 million euros in the corresponding period of 2025. Travel receipts increased by 752.9 million euros, or 36.9%, reaching 2,790.7 million euros, while travel payments also rose by 138.5 million euros, or 14.0%, reaching 1,126.4 million euros.
The rise in travel receipts is attributable both to a 27.1% increase in inbound travel and to an 8.6% increase in average spending per trip. Net receipts from the provision of travel services offset 15.8% of the goods account deficit and accounted for 78.6% of total net receipts from services.
Travel Revenues
In April 2026, as mentioned above, travel receipts increased by 9.5% compared to the same month in 2025. More specifically, receipts from residents of EU-27 countries rose by 10.7% to 544.9 million euros, as did receipts from residents of other countries, which increased by 8.2% (April 2026: 512.5 million euros, April 2025: 473.7 million euros).
The rise in receipts from residents of EU-27 countries was mainly due to a 12.5% increase in receipts from residents of eurozone countries (April 2026: 474.6 million euros, April 2025: 421.9 million euros), while receipts from residents of EU-27 countries outside the euro area increased by 0.2% to 70.4 million euros.
Specifically, with regard to the most important countries of origin for travelers from the eurozone, revenue from Germany decreased by 21.5% to 140.5 million euros, while revenue from France increased by 1.5% to 78.6 million euros. Revenues from Italy rose by 38.6% to 45.3 million euros. Among other countries, receipts from the United Kingdom rose by 32.0% to 118.4 million euros, while those from the United States fell by 7.4% to 154.8 million euros.
During the January–April 2026 period, tourism receipts rose by 36.9% compared to the same period in 2025, reaching 2,790.7 million euros. This trend is attributable to an increase of 38.7% in receipts from residents of EU-27 countries, which totaled 1,370.2 million euros, as well as a 37.5% increase in receipts from residents of other countries, which amounted to 1,336.7 million euros. More specifically, receipts from residents of eurozone countries amounted to 1,183.8 million euros, up 38.8%, while receipts from residents of EU-27 countries outside the eurozone rose by 37.7% to 186.3 million euros.
Specifically, receipts from Germany fell by 10.5% to 263.0 million euros, while receipts from France rose by 12.6% to 123.8 million euros. Revenues from Italy were 57.5% higher, reaching 159.0 million euros. Among other countries, revenue from the United Kingdom showed a significant increase, reaching 331.7 million euros, while revenue from the U.S. decreased by 0.8% to 327.3 million euros.
Inbound Travel
Inbound travel in April 2026 totaled 1,838.7 thousand travelers, an increase of 10.6% compared to the same month in 2025. Specifically, travel through airports increased by 5.0% and travel through road border crossings by 34.1%, compared to April 2025. The increase in inbound travel was driven by a rise in travel from both EU-27 countries (up 15.1%) and other countries (up 5.7%).
More specifically, travel from eurozone countries totaled 859.0 thousand travelers, an increase of 14.7%, while tourist arrivals from EU-27 countries outside the eurozone also rose by 17.5%, reaching 133.0 thousand travelers.
Specifically, travel from Germany rose by 2.6% to 237.2 thousand travelers, while travel from France increased by 6.3% to 110.5 thousand travelers. Tourist arrivals from Italy also rose by 15.4%, reaching 81,600 travelers. As for other countries, tourist arrivals from the United Kingdom rose by 53.3% to 195,000 travelers, while those from the United States increased by 2.9% to 155,200 travelers.
During the January–April 2026 period, inbound travel increased by 27.1% to 5,240.4 thousand travelers, compared to 4,122.2 thousand travelers during the corresponding period of 2025. Specifically, travel through airports increased by 12.8%, and travel through road border crossings increased by 67.8%.
During the period under review, travel traffic from the EU-27 countries totaled 2,777.9 thousand travelers, representing a 36.1% increase compared to the corresponding period in 2025, while travel from other countries rose by 18.3% to 2,462.5 thousand travelers. Tourist arrivals from eurozone countries rose by 31.4%, while those from EU-27 countries outside the eurozone increased by 64.3%.
Specifically, travel from Germany rose by 12.4% to 534,500 travelers, as did travel from France, which increased by 14.1% to 187,900 travelers. Tourist traffic from Italy also rose by 21.6%, reaching 241,200 travelers. As for other countries, tourist arrivals from the United Kingdom increased by 51.0% to 445,000 travelers, while those from the United States decreased by 3.4% to 327,800 travelers.