Assessing the Tourism Potential of the Greek Islands of South Aegean

This paper reports on the development and application of a regression model aiming to assess the touristim potential of the Greek islands of South Aegean. The model considers physical characteristics, accommodation infrastructure and transportation options (sea and air services) in order to conclude on the explanatory variables determining the tourism development and reveal the tourism potential of the less developed islands of the region. It was found that having an airport with a runway long enough to support international air traffic, especially for islands far away from their nearest port, and maintaining a strong online presence, boost island tourism. A lengthier and more tortuous coastline also increased tourism, possibly acting as a surrogate for accessibility to swimming and other marine entertainment activities. Future research will examine the number of tourists incoming by sea vs air as well as domestic vs international tourism in the entire Aegean sea.