Greece Gets Ready For ITB Berlin 2013

Greece’s new communication approach to international markets will be displayed at leading travel trade show ITB Berlin taking place this week from Wednesday 6 March to Sunday 10 March at the Messe Berlin International Convention Center.

Under the slogan “Greece, All Time Classic,” in Hall 2.2/101, the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) will aim to effectively manage Greece’s brand name to the German and other international markets.

In the Greek pavilion, GNTO officials will be on hand to provide information on Greece’s attractions, tourism developments and investment opportunities and answer questions from the trade and the public.

At the same time, Greek regions, hotels, travel agencies and airline companies will be ready to make B2B contacts with German and other international tour operators, airlines, and worldwide travel and tourism professionals.

Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni.

According to ITB events, Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni will give a speech at the World Tourism Leaders Summit: Green for Life, Green for Tourism on Thursday, 7 March. Other speakers will include the secretary general of the UNWTO, Taleb Rifai and the tourism ministers of India, Egypt, Indonesia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Seychelles and Cambodia.

Greece to be discussed at ITB

Greece will also be a topic for discussion in a session of the ITB Berlin Convention, which takes place in parallel with the ITB Berlin trade show.

The discussion will take place on the third day of the convention on Friday, 8 March, in the ITB Destination Days category in a session entitled “Sympathy or Scepticism? The Importance of Tourism in Greece.”

From the Greek side, the director general of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE), George Drakopoulos, and Tourism and Marketing Consultant, Dr. Dimitris Koutoulas, will attend the panel.

The panel will also include Germany’s federal deputy labor minister Hans-Joachim Fuchtel (Mr. Fuchtel has been appointed by Chancellor Angela Merkel as a special envoy to promote Greek-German cooperation on a local administration level).

Chancellor Merkel to open ITB Berlin 2013

German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel

The opening ceremony of ITB Berlin will take place on 5 March 2013 with leading figures from politics and tourism and over 4,500 distinguished invitees, delegates and members of the press. ITB Berlin will be opened by German Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel for the first time.

At the start of the world’s leading travel trade show the partner country Indonesia will present a colorful display of traditional music and dance.

At ITB last year a total of 10,644 exhibitors from 187 countries displayed their products and services to 172,000 visitors, who included 113,006 trade visitors.

Grand Finale of ITB Berlin – The Delphic Festival

ITB 2012

At the end of the world’s leading travel trade show visitors, exhibitors and guests will be taking part in a joint celebration once again. The International Delphic Council is organizing the Delphic Festival for the fourth time.

The festival has been inspired by the Delphic Games, the history of which goes back to the Panhellenic Games in ancient Greece.

GTP will be at ITB 2013 and keep you updated!