Xenia Property on Chios to Reopen as Hotel After Decades of Neglect

Chios island

One more neglected formerly state-run hotel, the Xenia on the island of Chios will reopen almost 30 years later to visitors after Public Properties Company (ETAD) completed an agreement for the 50-year lease of the property with Avlum Enterprises Company Limited of the Tsakos Group.

ETAD CEO Stefanos Vlastos and Ioannis Saroglou, representative of the winning bidder (through e-auction), signed the agreement under which Avlum will renovate and reopen the property as a modern hotel unit.

Expressing his satisfaction, Vlastos said great effort had gone into the finalization of the deal which ensures the reconstruction and reopening of the historic Xenia “for the benefit and further tourist and economic upgrade of Chios”.

Vlastos admitted that the state-run Xenia hotels, which marked their heyday in the 50s to late 70s and are “significant cultural and tourism assets for the country, have remained unused for decades, presenting an image of abandonment”.

Ioannis Saroglou, representative of Avlum Enterprises Company Limited and ETAD CEO Stefanos Vlastos.

Vlastos pledged that ETAD will work towards doing away with age-old obstacles and creating the optimal conditions for their utilization through “the attraction of serious investors and for the rest of the Xenias that belong to our portfolio and have not been utilized until now”.

“Our ultimate goal is to put an end to the neglect of a number of such tourist properties, ensuring their viability and creating jobs and conditions for the effective development for both the local communities and the country as a whole,” he said.

On his part, Saroglou said Avlum would proceed with the upgrade of the landmark hotel, “which is an important part of Chios’ cultural heritage and of Greek tourism. It is the vision of Captain Panagiotis Tsakos and all of ours to recreate a modern and welcoming hotel that will be a jewel for Chios,” he said.

Constructed in 1958, the three-storey Xenia Chios is located in the heart of Chios along the main coastal road some 700m from the port and 2km from the island’s airport.

The hotel has been designated by the culture ministry as protected cultural monument of contemporary architecture.

“This investment, following the investment for the development of Chios marina, is being implemented during a critical economic period,” said Saroglou, adding that it will contribute to the development of the island, create jobs and pave the way growth.

Earlier this summer, the Xenia property at Karteros Beach in Heraklion, Crete, was reclaimed by ETAD.