Have you heard of the Greek expression “I pineza ston harti”?
Literally translated as “the pin on the map,” it’s often the term you’ll hear Athenians use when referring to Alexandroupoli, an eight-hour drive from the capital.
Home to around 70,000 people as per the 2021 Census, it is the last urban centre before the country’s northeastern border with Turkey.
The port city made headlines last month in Greece for the tourism boom it is experiencing, largely thanks to Turkish visitors. Around 3,000 Turkish people are estimated to visit the city every week for shopping and leisure. And the tourist season is reportedly expanding well beyond the Greek summer months.
Alexandroupoli is turning into a “year-round city break destination”, its deputy mayor of tourism, Petros Kiriakidis, says.
“We’ve seen an exponential rise in road arrivals from neighbouring countries, Turkey and the Balkan countries, but also from mainland Greece, especially in the post-Covid years,” Kiriakidis tells Neos Kosmos.
Alexandroupoli, with its lighthouse trademark, made headlines in Greek media last month, for receiving 3,000 Turkish visitors weekly. Photo: Ilias Grigoriadis
Strategic position
Alexandroupoli’s mayor, Ioannis Zampoukis, attributes the tourism growth to a promotion strategy they undertook after the city started gaining prominence in geopolitical discourse.
“It came to the forefront as one of the fastest developing cities in Greece,” Zampoukis tells Neos Kosmos.
“We wanted to capitalise on this add-on value and reached out to experts for a long-term plan.”
Since 2022, the city’s port has been transformed into a transportation hub for US and NATO military personnel and equipment under a Greek–American Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement. It also serves as an entry point for natural gas to Southeast Europe, with a Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) terminal anchored permanently 17km southwest of the port.
“Initially we aimed at the Cypriot market,” Zampoukis says, describing a promotion strategy that dubbed Alexandroupoli a seaside, value-for-money destination.
“We did the same for Bulgaria and Romania and took part in several international expos.”
They are also pushing into European markets, he adds, including Germany and France.
“And we were the first Greek municipality to showcase our destination to Istanbul, a city just 2.5 hours away with a target market of 20 plus million people.”
Soufli is among the Evros’ rural towns reportedly attracting land buyers from Turkey and Bulgaria. Photo: Antonios Lamprou/Eurokinissi
One in two visitors are Turkish nationals
The Turkish market appears to have paid off the best so far.
Deputy mayor of tourism, Kiriakidis, shares some results from a visitor survey conducted over August–September 2025. Data shows that one in two visitors are Turkish nationals. Greeks make up 23 per cent of total visitors, with 17 per cent coming from Balkan countries and the rest being Europeans.
“We have insights into spending, revealing that visitors from Turkey spend more than those coming from Europe and Balkan countries; the Greeks come last.”
How much more?
According to the survey, the average amount spent by Turkish respondents for a family trip to Alexandroupoli was around AUD 2,600 (EUR 1,490). This was more than double the average amount spent by Greeks, with Balkan tourist spending lying somewhere in the middle.
While the tourist mix in Alexandroupoli comprises also of Bulgarians, Romanians, and Greeks, the lion’s share is taken by Turkish nationals.
Photo: Facebook/municipality.alexandroupolis
A case study of year-round tourism
Kiriakidis says most visitors from the neighbouring country are well-off residents of Istanbul or moderate-income earners from European Turkey.
“It’s become a year-round city break destination and this has channelled cash flow directly into the local economy.”
They come from places like Edirne (Andrianoupoli) in the north, through the Kastanies border crossing, or Canakkale (Dardanelles Strait) via Kipi, the customs and border control terminal situated a mere 30-minute drive from Alexandroupoli.
Some arrive in their own cars and spend lavishly on electronics, clothing and alcohol. Others board tour buses for shopping excursions at department stores and major supermarkets.
Tourists forming queues outside a restaurant in Alexandroupoli on a weeknight. Photo: Ilias Grigoriadis
High inflation in Turkey has played a role in the surge of visitors, who claim to find certain goods cheaper in Alexandroupoli than at home.
While boosting parts of the local economy—namely accommodation, hospitality and retail—the influx of tourists has taken a toll on permanent residents. Locals face rising costs in hospitality and higher rent prices, driven by a surge in Airbnb investment.
“It’s becoming a problem everywhere, and solutions need to be found by the central government,” Kiriakidis says.
He believes investment is needed in hotel accommodation.
“We’re lacking the infrastructure needed for thousands of visitors at this rate.”
Alexandroupoli is the capital of Evros, a rural region sharing borders with Bulgaria in the north, and Turkey in the east and north. Here, a soldier guards over the border wall alongside Evros river, which forms the frontier between Greece and Turkey. Photo: APP via AP/Dimitris Papamitsos/Greek Prime Minister’s Office
‘A matter of national security’
Meanwhile, the rumoured surge of Turkish investors in Alexandroupoli raises concerns, according to some voices—such as Paris Papadakis, the local MP of far-right party Greek Solution (Elliniki Lisi).
Speaking to local media, Papadakis raised the alarm over Turkish investors buying or renting property, hinting at a potential “organised plan”. And he passed the buck to the Deputy Minister of Digital Governance, Christos Dermetzopoulos, whose portfolio includes land registry data.
“He should hand over data on how many estates have been purchased by foreign investors in Evros. Then we can check which ones have Turkish shareholders,” Papadakis said.
“It’s a matter of national security, it’s not a partisan issue,” he added.
The Alexandroupoli LNG terminal, also known as FSRU (Floating Storage and Regasification Unit) began commercial operations in October 2024. Photo: Gastrade/Eurokinissi
Legal loophole paving way to ‘silent colonisation’?
According to mayor Zampoukis, Turkish business investment within Alexandroupoli is not a problem.
“Having a foreign investor in the city purchasing a plot to convert into a clinic, a hotel or student accommodation can boost the local market and business development in the region.”
The real issue, he says, lies in land purchases by foreign companies taking place outside the regional capital, in rural Evros.
“There are too many real estate contracts in deserted homes in borderland villages, mainly in the municipalities of Soufli and Didymoteicho,” Zampoukis says.
Communities there face a diminishing, ageing population, in line with Greece’s wider demographic crisis.
“We see people selling their homes through Turkish companies or properties otherwise passing to foreign nationals. The problem lies in the legal framework.”
Alexandroupoli-based lawyer Fotini Drakoudi explains:
“Current legislation sets very stringent criteria for purchase of land by foreign nationals in borderland regions like Evros,” Drakoudi told Neos Kosmos, describing a multilevel assessment including approvals by a special trans-ministerial committee.
“But it leaves practically unchecked the purchase of land by legal persons, such as companies, controlled by foreign nationals, as long as the companies are registered in Greece.”
It is a different story for Bulgarians, who since entering the Schengen Zone in 2025 have the right to buy property for residential or investment purposes in any EU member state.
According to data by the Short-Term Accommodation Managers Association of Greece, Airbnb-type listings have more than doubled between 2023 and 2025 in Alexandroupoli. Photo: Facebook/municipality.alexandroupolis
“We’ve seen a rise in property sales […] in deserted Evros villages where many Bulgarian nationals reportedly reside and work in the fields,” Drakoudi says.
Zampoukis says the issue is out of his purview as mayor but insists on calling it out.
“I see a ‘silent colonisation’ underway.
“In a few years’ time, these communities could have a different demographic. You understand how dangerous this is for a borderland area of Greece like Evros,” he concludes.
Citing data from the Evros Chamber of Commerce, MP Paris Papadakis said that as of 2024 there were at least 20 Turkish-owned businesses operating in Alexandroupoli. Photo: Giorgos Kontarinis/Eurokinissi
