Thessaloniki Shows its Best to Italy’s ΕLLE, Donna Moderna Magazines

Trekking at Mount Olympus. Photo source: TTO.

The best that Thessaloniki and the surrounding areas of the Central Macedonia Region have to offer visitors was promoted recently to Italian journalist Claudia Valeriani Fagnoni.

A journalist writing for ELLE and Donna Moderna fashion and lifestyle magazines, Fagnoni visited northern Greece as part of a press trip organized by the Thessaloniki Tourism Organization (TTO) and the tourism department of the Central Macedonia Region in collaboration with the Italian office of the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO).

The aim of the press trip was to showcase Thessaloniki as a luxury culinary destination and promote its surrounding destinations as ideal for trekking.

While in Thessaloniki, Fagnoni dined at the ONOMA hotel restaurant in Thessaloniki and was treated to many local specialties. She also indulged in the region’s wine wealth at the Gerovassiliou Estate and had the chance to observe the making of a bougatsa, a traditional Greek pastry.

Bougatsa making in Thessaloniki. Photo source: TTO.

The press trip included a guided tour to the city’s most important monuments. The Italian journalist also visited Pieria where she hiked through the picturesque landscape of the foothills of Mount Olympus and was welcomed by representatives of the Pieria Hoteliers Association.

Fagnoni gathered material to promote Thessaloniki’s UNESCO-recognized gastronomy in the Italian version of French ELLE Magazine, the largest fashion magazine in the world with 21 million readers and 100 million unique visitors per month. Pieria’s trekking routes will appear in the popular Italian weekly fashion magazine Donna Moderna.

Italian journalist Claudia Valeriani Fagnoni with TTO President Voula Patoulidou. Photo source: TTO.

The Italian journalist also met with Thessaloniki Tourism Organization President Voula Patoulidou.

During their meeting, Patoulidou discussed the organization’s promotion projects and partnerships and OTT’s goal to extend the tourism season.

“Thessaloniki can act as a hub that can strengthen the surrounding areas’ tourism flows,” she said, adding that promoting the destination as ideal for city breaks and alternative forms of tourism can successfully support the organization’s strategy.