Key Tourism Figures 2019: Konstantinos Zervas, Mayor of Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki is a unique city with a distinct footprint in international history

The last years Greece has made significant steps in the field of tourism, depicted in the increased number of foreign tourist arrivals and overnight stays, as well as in the rapid growth of direct foreign investments.

Thessaloniki is an amalgam of history, combining Ottoman, Roman, Byzantine and Jewish heritages, culture and authentic city experiences engraving a historic path of more than two thousand years.

The International Airport “Macedonia” accounts for 23.35% of the total traffic of Greece while the port of Thessaloniki hosts cruise ships as a transit port.

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Konstantinos Zervas, Mayor of Thessaloniki

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…One of the main aims of my term, as the newly elected Mayor of Thessaloniki, is to boost tourism development activating the multiplier effect of tourism growth…

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One of the main aims of my term, as the newly elected Mayor of Thessaloniki, is to boost tourism development activating the multiplier effect of tourism growth, i.e. the resulting positive effect of tourism development in other primary and secondary sectors of the local economy.

My professional experience along with the experience I have acquired as a Deputy Mayor in the past reinforced the belief that no goal can be achieved without setting a clear strategy and a strategic plan.

The two leading prerequisites for tourism development are: (a) a clean and green city with all the necessary infrastructure and (b) the accurate determination of the tourism product and the brand of it, emerging the distinct identity of Thessaloniki in the global tourism market.

Once prerequisites are fulfilled the City can engrave a strategic plan, targeting certain foreign markets with a detailed communication plan via exploiting technology, within a certain time schedule.

Thessaloniki is a unique city with a distinct footprint in international history and a great potential for being transformed into a tourism, economic, cultural, research and innovation center.