Thessaloniki Tourism Organization Meets with Major Travel Players at ITB Berlin Expo

TTO Deputy President Maria Karagianni with TTO President Voula Patoulidou at the ITB Berlin 2023. Photo source: TTO.

The Thessaloniki Tourism Organization (TTO) had the opportunity to meet with major players of the travel and tourism scene and promote the northern Greek city’s tourism product through a series of meetings held during the recent ITB Berlin expo in Germany.

The leading travel and tourism exhibition opened its doors on the Berlin exhibition grounds during March 7-9 for the first time as an exclusively B2B event.

Led by its president, Voula Patoulidou, and deputy president, Maria Karagianni, the TTO held discussions with representatives from Hotelbeds, a prominent wholesale market leader in online overnight sales, and Amadeus, a leading Global Distribution System (GDS) in the travel industry.

Moreover, following the organization’s close collaboration with the German state television, contacts were also made with executives of the RBB television station and Deutsche Welle to further promote Thessaloniki and its surrounding areas to the German audience. Talks were also held with Jet 2 executives who presented the company’s development plans for Thessaloniki and the Central Macedonia Region.

TTO at the ITB Berlin 2023. Photo source: TTO.

During ITB 2023, Patoulidou met with National Geographic Traveler and National Geographic Traveler Food Special Projects Head Matt Midworth, to discuss actions to support Thessaloniki’s culinary identity international marketing.

In addition, the TTO also discussed its upcoming partnership with Marketing Greece for the promotion of Thessaloniki.

The Halkidiki Tourism Organization (HTO) President Grigoris Tasios and Patoulidou at the ITB Berlin 2023. Photo source: ITB Berlin 2023.

“Our meetings with tourism stakeholders at ITB Berlin offered us the opportunity to present Thessaloniki’s and Halkidiki’s advantages as destinations,” said Patoulidou, adding that the first feedback regarding Thessaloniki’s 2023 tourism performance looked very promising. At ITB Berlin, Thessaloniki and Halkidiki were presented to the exhibition’s tourism trade players in a joint stand.

On her side, Karagianni mentioned that bookings from the German market were on the up and that both TTO and the Thessaloniki Municipality are “prepared to meet tourists’ high expectations and increased competition from other holiday destinations”.

TTO at the ITB Berlin 2023. Photo source: TTO.

ITB Berlin 2023 ran with the slogan “Open for Change” and, following the pandemic lockdowns, reopened its gates at the Berlin Exhibition Center breaking visitor records with more than 90,000 tourism professionals from 186 countries.

For the past six decades, the coveted tourism trade show serves as a reference point for travel agents and journalists, providing a reliable “index” of the climate and trends prevailing in the global tourism industry while being a top networking choice among tourism professionals.