Tourism in Cyprus is a simple matter of value for money

There has been considerable debate about the reduction of tourists coming to Cyprus. The combined effect of the rise of the euro and the general rate of inflation will surely drive most potential tourist away from the island.

Coffee in Cyprus was already the most expensive in the world, when Costa increased it by 14 per cent last week. A year ago, the price of coffee on the commodities exchange was $1.32/lb and today it is $1.12, how then can any increase be justifiable?

A medium sized coffee here is €3.65 and at Heathrow airport it is €2.60. I would wager that the rent and wages at Heathrow are considerably more than they are in Cyprus. The cost of eating out with wine has been going up steadily since before the euro was introduced, especially the price of local wines where the mark-up is often 600 per cent. It is little wonder the average Northern European will look somewhere closer to home and get better value for their money.

The most common discussion amongst expatriates is not only the cost of living, but how long many of them can afford to stay. Their departure will naturally cause the number properties on an already flooded market to increase. So the future for tourism looks even bleaker when these people return home and tell everyone who will listen, what the cost of living is like here.

Mike Oldham
Oroklini, Larnaca

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.