Dec 30, 2019
Greek restaurant and hotel owners unhappy with migrant camps
They say overcrowded camps of migrants are driving away tourist business.

Migrants protesting in the town of Samos, Greece.
John Laurenson
Tourism is increasingly important to the Greek economy. It accounted for 20% of the country’s GDP in 2018; people’s livelihoods on many Greek islands are even more dependent on the tourist industry. But on the Greek islands where tens of thousands of migrants from Africa and the Middle East are now living in camps, tourism has been hit hard.
The situation is bad for the migrants, in overcrowded and poorly-equipped facilities. It is also straining the relationship with local restaurant and hotel owners, who say the camps are driving away tourist business.