The prospects offered by digital nomads for Greece's development and the opportunities emerging for Greek tourism were highlighted by the speakers at the first Marketing Greece conference on the topic: 1st Work From Greece Summit, emphasizing that Greece can play a leading role in attracting visitors who will choose Greece for their work.
Vasilis Kikilias: Greece is the ideal destination for digital nomads
From Patras, where he is accompanying Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on his mission, Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias emphasized that Greece is an ideal destination in the eyes of Northern Europeans, either to work as a digital nomad or to live after retirement. After all, there are dozens of home purchases throughout Greece by Europeans who want to live in Greece, he said. For the Minister of Tourism, Greece can combine traditional hospitality with modern marketing tools that promote new tourism products. In fact, the minister conveyed to the conference audience the desire of executives of large international tourism companies to work in Greece, mentioning, among other things, that our country's climate helps the psychology of their employees.
Kyriakos Pierrakakis: Starting a sole proprietorship through Gov.gr is coming soon
With his sights set on the development of this new tourism product, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Minister of Digital Governance, announced some very positive developments that will make it easier for digital nomads to come to Greece for work. As he said, in a few weeks, the establishment of a sole proprietorship through Gov.gr will become a reality, which will create a new era in entrepreneurship. In fact, in the coming weeks, the services offered by Gov.gr will be translated into English, with all that this entails for digital nomads who come to Greece. In any case, the Minister of Digital Governance said that every day a new service is added to Gov.gr. It is noteworthy that in 2018, digital transactions by citizens amounted to 9 million, and this year we have reached 1 billion.
Miltiadis Varvitsiotis: Medical Visa is coming to boost medical tourism in Greece
In his speech, Deputy Foreign Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis noted that Greece was one of the first countries to recognize the new trend around digital nomads, who use a laptop to do their work while traveling around the world. As the Deputy Minister explained, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already adopted and issues the Business Visa, the Digital Nomads Visa, the Students Visa, and is moving forward with the issuance of the Medical Visa, with the aim of strengthening medical tourism from visitors who will come to Greece. Nomads Visa, the Students Visa, and is moving forward with the issuance of the Medical Visa, with the aim of boosting medical tourism from visitors who come to Greece for medical purposes.
In his message, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, who did not attend the event in person, pointed out that he is in Cairo to sign an intergovernmental agreement between Greece and Egypt to address Greece's need for agricultural workers. Thus, through the intergovernmental agreement, Egyptian workers are expected to arrive in Greece, with Mr. Varvitsiotis emphasizing that the intention is to extend this cooperation to the tourism sector as well.
In any case, Greek consulates that issue visas to foreign visitors are moving towards modernization with the aim of becoming digital issuing offices, so that anyone interested can be served with just a few clicks.
Kostas Bakogiannis: Athens takes center stage in the Digital Nomads rankings
Focusing on cities that are leading the way in attracting digital nomads, Athens is at the forefront, pointed out Kostas Bakoyannis, Mayor of Athens, noting that this is a conscious choice made by workers abroad. It is characteristic that Athens is moving at a record pace in terms of tourist flows, while at the same time Athens is a magnet for investment in the tourism sector. Responding to a question about whether he fears overtourism, Mr. Bakoyannis pointed out that Athens does not currently face a problem, but that appropriate preparations must be made for the future. He explained that he is already working on a plan for tourist buses and loading and unloading times for commercial stores. Regarding short-term rentals and the saturation of certain areas, he reiterated that market regulation should be carried out by the municipalities. There are areas that cannot bear any additional burden, but there are also 120 neighbourhoods that would like to attract tourists, he added.
Finally, an area described as the most desirable for digital nomads is Crete. In fact, Regional Governor Stavros Arnaoutakis emphasized that there is already a strategy in place to promote the island in this regard, and many people live and work remotely from Crete.
