Tourism arrivals in Greece showed an increase over the first quarter of the year that was almost twice the global average, according to data from the World Tourism Organization of the United Nations (UNWTO).

International tourism continued to grow in the January-March period, but at a slower rate than in the previous couple of years: The global increase in arrivals amounted to 4 percent, while in Greece incoming tourism traffic grew 7.8 percent compared to the first quarter of last year, reaching 1.926 million visitors, according to Bank of Greece figures.

Travel receipts in the year to the end of March amounted to 760 million euros, showing an increase of 37.2 percent on an annual basis, with the bulk of the quarter’s arrivals and receipts attributed to city break visitors.

Europe, the world’s biggest tourism region, posted an annual increase of 4 percent in arrivals during Q1, led by destinations in Southern Europe such as Greece, as well as in Central and Eastern Europe which outperformed with a 5 percent advance.

Globally the most notable growth was recorded in the Caribbean (up 17 percent) and in Africa (11 percent).

This article was originally published at ekathimerini.com.