Philoxenia 2022 Opens in Thessaloniki for a Whole Weekend of Greek Tourism

A packed audience of tourism professionals and government officials gathered on Friday night for the official Philoxenia International Tourism Exhibition 2022 opening ceremony in Thessaloniki, northern Greece.

Considered Greece’s meeting point for the development of strategies and business alliances among tourism professionals, Philoxenia – in its 37th year – is being held once again with the Hotelia international hotel equipment expo.

The exhibitions opened at the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Center with 335 exhibitors, 115 hosted buyers from 35 countries and a business delegation of 158 professionals from Iraqi Kurdistan, coordinated by the Erbil Chamber of Commerce. Over 3,500 scheduled meetings between Greek exhibitors with the hosted buyers and Iraqi professionals will take place over the weekend.

The Philoxenia-Hotelia duo, organized by TIF-Helexpo, aims to present the country’s leading tourist destinations, new technologies as well as tourism-related products and services.

“I would like to say a big ‘thank you’ to the people of Greek tourism for the successful tourism performance of our country,” Greek Tourism Minister Vassilis Kikilias said while inaugurating the exhibitions.

During his speech, Minister Kikilias underlined the importance of cooperation in Greece’s national effort and highlighted that “hospitality has always been in the heart and soul of the Greeks and is what makes our country stand out”.

Referring to this year’s 2022 tourism performance, the minister expressed his hope that 2023 will be even stronger.

During his speech at the inauguration ceremony, TIF-Helexpo President Tasos Tzikas referred to Philoxenia being a celebration of Greek tourism in Thessaloniki. He also highlighted that this autumn is one of full exhibitions in the city.

Thessaloniki Mayor Konstantinos Zervas highlighted the significance of exhibitions and events for the city. Referring to the multitude of events that have taken place in the city in recent months, the mayor said “every month is Thessaloniki’s month”.

Philoxenia’s Honored Country this year is Armenia and Honored Destiantion is the Municipality of Heraklion, Crete.

Parallel events

A rich program of parallel events will be featured during this year’s Philoxenia.

Events began on Friday and included:

• the annual meeting of the presidents of Greece’s hotelier associations, headed by the Hellenic Hoteliers Federation

• a presentation by the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) of a holistic and detailed national strategy for Greek tourism, with a 2030 outlook

• a presentation of the Greek Meetings Alliance (GMA) initiative, launched by the Hellenic Association of Professional Congress Organizers & Destinations Events Specialists (HAPCO & DES), the This is Athens – Convention & Visitors Bureau and the  Thessaloniki Convention Bureau (TCB).

On Saturday, events will open with a sports tourism conference at Venue 14 of the Thessaloniki International Exhibition Center.

The Hotelia exhibition, which will present the latest trends regarding the equipment of hotels and catering enterprises, has also a number of parallel events scheduled.

The full program of parallel events for Philoxenia and Hotelia can be found here.

The Thessaloniki International Exhibition Center is also hosting the 1st Real Estate Expo North, an exhibition promoting the opportunities of the northern Greek real estate market. Co-organized by RM International and TIF – Helexpo, the event will see the attendance of over 50 investors from abroad.

All three exhibitions – Philoxenia, Hotelia and Real Estate Expo North – will run until Sunday.

The Greek Travel Pages (GTP) is a communication sponsor for the Philoxenia expo.