Tourism officials expect a million additional visitors this summer because of the Aug. 13-29 Olympic Games, but price gouging by hoteliers will not be allowed. Hotels must get government approval for their rates, and the tourism ministry has stated that rates will be kept to last year’s level or slightly lower. In some cases, hotels requested rates as much as eight times higher than in 2003, but increases will be permitted only if justified, and then only slightly higher than inflation. Security for the Games has been a concern, but officials got a boost recently when NATO’s commander in Europe expressed confidence in Greece’s security preparations and vowed NATO’s full support to see that the Games remain safe.
