Greek stores to give Israeli tourists 20% discount

Israeli tourists will be offered 20 percent discounts at many Greek stores in 2016, as part of an initiative to help the struggling Greek economy, Greek officials said.

The plan, announced last week by Deputy Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Mardas and the Hellenic Federation of Commerce and Enterprise, also will apply to visitors from the United States, Russia and Turkey.

Greek stores will voluntarily opt into the program and the discounts will come in addition to tax-free benefits tourists are already eligible for, said federation president, Vassilis Korkidis.

Greece’s tourism industry has been the one bright spot in an economy that has been devastated by six years of economic crisis.

The period has also seen a large upturn in the numbers of Israelis visiting Greece as relations between the two countries have improved and security fears keep Israelis from neighboring Turkey.

Eligible tourists from the “honored” countries will need to show their passports, said Korkidis.

Greece’s Aegean Airlines will be distributing leaflets detailing participating stores.