Over 1.1 million visitors entered Greece via Evzoni since June

More than one million people — precisely 1,100,000 visitors — have entered Greece through the Evzoni border crossing since June, while about 940,000 people exited the country in the same period, according to published data.

Traffic at Evzoni has increased sharply in recent days, with long lines of vehicles and several-hour waits for entry to Greece reported near popular northern destinations. Media coverage has shown photos and video of the queues.

Daily peaks and monthly breakdown

On a single recent day up to midday, authorities recorded 16,500 people entering Greece and 8,500 leaving. Over the three days of 7, 8 and 9 August some 62,000 people entered the country while 55,000 departed.

By month, the flow through Evzoni was 632,000 entries and 554,000 exits in July, and 468,000 entries and 387,000 exits in June — figures that together account for the summer totals.

Local hoteliers warn that the delays risk harming tourism in northern Greece, especially in Halkidiki and Pieria. Iraklis Tsitlakidis, president of the Association of Hoteliers of Pieria and vice‑president of the Federation of Hoteliers of Greece, said the waiting times "could act as a deterrent."

Tsitlakidis added that "It is unpleasant when visitors are forced to wait for hours at the border and the first impression they get is negative, a fact that directly affects both the tourist experience and the competitiveness of the region." He said hoteliers are asking for more staff at busy crossings, more control lanes to be opened and improved coordination with neighbouring border services.

Commenting on bookings, Tsitlakidis described last month as "solid" and said occupancy for the first half of August stands at about 80 percent. Grigoris Tasios, head of Halkidiki's hoteliers and tourism organisation, expects the season to finish with lower revenues and arrivals compared with last year and noted that "2026 is a year of last‑minute bookings, and the real results will be seen at the end of the season."

Queues and delays have also been reported at the Kipoi crossing on the land border with Turkey. In response to peak flows, the EU's new biometric registration system for third‑country travellers allows certain crossings to temporarily suspend fingerprint and photo collection until 6 September, and Evzoni has been registering travellers without taking photographs and fingerprints for the time being.

Photo: press material from the event