Thessaloniki Hoteliers Shine at Korea Travel Fair

Panos Livadas, Secretary General Greek National Tourism Organization; Evdokia Tsatsouri, Marketing Director of the Thessaloniki Hotels Association; and Alternate Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura at the Thessaloniki stand at KOTFA 2015 in Seoul.

As part of its ongoing tourism strategy to promote the northern port city of Thessaloniki and its surrounding regions, the Thessaloniki Hotels Association (THA) added South Korea to its roster with its first-time participation in the Korean World Travel Fair (KOTFA) in Seoul, last week.

The South Korea event follows the THA’s activities in China as part of efforts to expand into a new, diverse and large market. The THA’s primary goal is to include Thessaloniki and the overall region in South Korean tour packages, which already promote Athens and the Aegean islands.

In the direction, the THA held B2B meetings with tour operators and explored the interests, demands, preferences and needs of South Korean travelers in order to identify a target group and formulate an action plan for the future. Korean Air’s direct charter flights from Seoul to Athens this summer are expected to boost traffic to the region.

Deputy Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura visited the Thessaloniki stand at this year’s fair, which was awarded as the “Best Presence” by the South Korean organizers.