TravelDailyNews: What are your expectations for residential tourism in Cyprus for 2007-2008?

Theodoros Aristodemou: Further to the latest statistics we have undertaken we believe that the residential tourism in Cyprus will achieve an increase of 10% for the years 2007 and 2008. Cyprus being for many years a very popular holiday destination for other European countries becomes now the perfect destination for a holiday home.

TDN: What trends are going to drive this segment in Cyprus?

T. A.: We observe an increase of Europeans interested in both permanent and holiday residency due to the accession of Cyprus into Europe and more so by the introduction of the Euro-zone by the beginning of 2008. Moreover Cyprus has proven to have enhanced tremendously towards infrastructure and quality land development.

TDN: What are your plans for the next five years?

T. A.: After extensive research we have noticed that various markets like UK, Central Northern Europe, traditionally investing in Spain and Portugal are now seeking for other destinations with a higher investment potential.
The government of Cyprus supports and approved the application submitted by many companies in Cyprus for further developments of luxury resorts to combine golf, spas, marinas, commercial areas, hotels, etc.
Aristo Developers proved to have a pioneer and leading role for this type of development and were the first company which proceeded and received approval by the relevant authorities for the developments of luxury resorts. This will attract the high budget buyers to the island of Cyprus and contribute to the new image of Cyprus being the perfect alternative for luxury property investment. Subsequently this will empower further the whole Cyprus economy.

TDN: Which countries do your clients represent and what kind of house or property do they look for?

T. A.: The majority of Aristo clients are from the UK, Russia, locals (Cyprus) and Central and Northern Europe. UK clients have mix demands from low budget apartments to top of the range beachfront villas, very similar is the Central and Northern Europe, whereas the Russian client tends to go for the up-market products either penthouses or beachfront villas. The local market focuses on the spacious apartments for permanent living.

TDN: How many of your clients buy a permanent house in Cyprus? What is the percentage of those who buy for summer holidays purposes?

T. A.: Currently the market share for permanent houses is 30% and for summer holidays is 70%. The trend of permanent increases and my assumption is that in the next 5 years it will be 40% permanent and 60% holiday.

TDN: Which regions concentrate the biggest interest among your clients and why?

T. A.: The regions which concentrate the biggest interest from our clients are Pafos, Polis and Limassol.
Pafos is a favored region due to its hospitality, beauty, landscape, archaeological history, culture of the city, the harbour, the Pafos international airport and its restaurants and bars.
Polis again, for its hospitality, beauty, archaeological history, fish taverns, and its nature.
Major offshore companies are based in Limassol due to its location, as it is centralized. It also benefits with its beaches, restaurants, culture, archaeological history and the traditional villages on the outskirts.

TDN: What kind of problems does the market face today in Cyprus? Is there still room for improvement?

T. A.: The problems that market face today in Cyprus are the infrastructure challenges. Having studied other destinations which had a very successful course for the last two decades in this field we observed they had adequate number of casinos, marinas, golf courses etc. The above components are vital towards to the development we expect to achieve in Cyprus.