International Women’s Travel Organization Holds Convention in Athens

Dr. Calliope Bourdara, deputy mayor of Athens, on the panel with Faye Alexander, member of the Australia Travel and Tourism Professionals, and Irene Mantzavelaki-Vassilopoulou, president of the Greek Women’s Tourist Association.

Athens-the Wonder of Revival was the theme of the 37th annual convention of the International Federation of Women’s Travel Organizations (IFWTO) held in Athens last month-in honor of the organization’s first ever convention held in this city.

Dr. Calliope Bourdara, deputy mayor of Athens, opened the convention with a speech on the recent improvements made to Athens ranging from infrastructure upgrades to the addition of greenery. Dr. Bourdara also discussed the often-overlooked Byzantine history of Athens, a period spanning eleven centuries from the 4th to the 15th century, and the wealth of extant sites that form a link between the ancient world and modern Greece. Under Dr. Bourdara’s oversight, the first book on Byzantine Athens was just published.

Birger Backman, senior advisor to the Universal Federation of Travel Agent Associations, gave the keynote address on advances in technology (ex. second generation internet) and the positive consequences for the travel industry, “reducing cost and time and making interaction with clients easy.”

In a related event, the world-famous Greek singer, Nana Mouskouri was awarded an honorary placard by the IFWTO and the Greek Women’s Tourist Association in appreciation of her promotion of Greece worldwide.

Founded in 1969, the IFWTO is a worldwide network of professional women in the travel and tourism industry with member clubs in over 35 countries.