Eureka! Institutional Repository

The complex nature of selling tourism services, the increasing international competitiveness, as well as the continuous changes in the tourist profile of individuals has lead tourism industry in searching and developing new products and services, as well as continuously improving the current services. The concept of low-cost strategy business is present today in several aspects of entrepreneurship, sometimes receiving a very small market share and some other times playing a vital role in both local and international markets. The current trend of acquiring value-for-money tourism products, both from the side of customers-tourists and from the side of tourism providers first appeared in the domain of aviation. In the last years, this trend has also been expanded in the domain of accommodation services. The present project reviews the aspect of budget hotels from the strategic perspective in Europe, Asia, and America, focusing on the activities of the main budget hotel operators and evaluating the potential for further development in a European country market, such as Greece. The study has made an in-depth analysis of the Greek hotel industry, in terms of supply, demand, and tourism development. In addition, a primary research study was conducted, in a sample of 100 travelers visiting Thessaloniki, aiming to investigate the perception, trends, and demands for budget hotel services in the city. The analysis of literature suggests that budget hotels would receive a considerable market share in Greece. This hypothesis has been confirmed from the finding of the primary research as well. The results provide investors with new ideas for future investment strategies and the academic community with new challenges for future research.