Greek banks closing ATMs to stem waves of withdrawals has not deterred Canberra Greeks from their annual holidays in their homeland.

When Canberra businessman and former Tuggeranong community council president Nick Tsoulias called to book accommodation in Greece he was asked to pay in cash. "I said how can I pay cash from Australia?" Ms Tsoulias said. "This is what's happening, this is what is tearing the country apart, they will collect the cash, they won't bank it, they won't pay taxes on it."

At the St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Kingston, parish priest Father Petros Kipouros says the country has suffered for five years. "The only thing we can do is pray for them," Father Kipouros said. "I think it is more complicated, because nowadays the economic crisis is like the blood pressure of the European community's economy, and all over the world. So, the only thing left is to pray for them."

Mr Tsoulias said Greece needed fresh elections to weigh benefits and drawbacks of decisions on accepting more cutbacks. The country's administration needed reform. The impacts would be widely felt across the world, including Australia, a key trading partner including importers of Greek feta cheese, which Mr Tsoulias says is the world's best.

"Greece's strength in getting out of this will be tourism. From my understanding their tourism numbers are well over 10 million people a year, so it is more than Australia's. They need to co-ordinate major cities around the world. There are no more direct flights to Athens from Australia, that already is a drawback. Qantas in the 1980s flew directly Sydney to Athens. You don't see that any more.

"The tourism industry is the one to prop it up. The problem is their ability to collect taxes and methods they use in a dysfunctional society. The ones who are protesting in Athens and a lot of the major capitals are not true Greeks, a lot are refugees who have come from the Middle East, Albania and Africa."

Greece needed to invite business leaders from abroad to head up their company boards, in much the same way as the country did in preparing to host the 2004 Olympic Games. Mr Tsoulias said hosting the games, however, had been a costly mistake because Greece could not afford them.

Greek Community of Canberra president George Karkizas said members had left for Greece last week and many were heading over there this week for annual holidays. "It seems to me they are not worried – of course they would be worried now there is a cash alert, but most have got from their banks some euros and Australian dollars."

Mr Karkizas, who came to Canberra in 1962, said as far as he was aware there were no Canberra Greeks fearful of losing their pensions or superannuation in the crisis. Even if they were, they would keep it to themselves.

He has lost sleep watching overnight news bulletins and does not believe much can be accomplished from Australia. He believes many Europeans don't understand Greek people's inability to absorb more austerity measures.

"People in Greece can't find work, they have a pension from an old mother, an old father, there are three or four or five people living from that pension. It is very hard, it is not easy,' he said.