Ayia Napa hopes for tourism restart at end of May

Ayia Napa mayor Christos Zannetou said on Wednesday he expects the tourist season to start at the end of May.

Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency, Zannetou said people working in the tourist industry in the Famagusta district all agree that the worldwide vaccination campaign against Covid-19 will start showing results in terms of number of arrivals sometime between June and July.

“Everyone working in the tourism industry is hoping for a successful vaccination campaign in order to reduce the number of coronavirus cases both in Cyprus and in the rest of Europe, where most of the tourists arriving in Cyprus come from.

“If everything goes smoothly, from June to October we are hoping to see the same number of arrivals as in 2019, which was a good year for tourism in Cyprus. There is also optimism regarding November, which we often include in the summer tourist season,” he said.

Zannetou said that the majority of businesses related to tourism in Ayia Napa did not work in 2020 because of the pandemic.

“The virus has significantly affected a lot of businesses, some of which are on the verge of bankruptcy.

“Ayia Napa municipality has adopted some support measures regarding taxes for shops, bars, restaurants and other companies affected by the failed season. However, it is clear that a tax reduction alone cannot determine the viability of a business.”

“Unfortunately, the pandemic has severely damaged tourism in Cyprus and the economic consequences on the industry in the near future are unpredictable.”

Zannetou, however, said that a large and ambitious project regarding the revamp of Tefkrou Anthia, a central and important road in Ayia Napa, is underway.

“The completion of the upgrade should take two years and it will give a breather to everyone working in the tourism industry in the area.

“The project will essentially be a complete renovation of Tefkrou Anthia, which will have wider sidewalks and more green spaces. We are talking about one of the most important streets of Ayia Napa, featuring plenty of shops, restaurants and hotels,” Zannetou concluded.