Ministry Agrees with Greek Church to Promote Religious Tourism

Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni Deputy Tourism Minister Elena Rapti and representatives of the Orthodox Church.

The Greek Tourism Ministry announced this week that it had reached an agreement with the Greek Orthodox Church to promote religious and pilgrimage tourism.

In this direction, Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni signed a protocol of cooperation with representatives of the Orthodox Church during the 2nd meeting of the Joint Pilgrimage Tourism Coordination Committee at the ministry in Athens.

The meeting was chaired by Deputy Tourism Minister responsible for pilgrimage tourism Elena Rapti and included the participation of representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Church of Greece, the Church of Crete, the Administration of Mount Athos, the ministries of culture and tourism, and the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO).

 “The new agreement is part of the ministry’s strategy to enrich the tourism experience, showcase religious monuments and sites of worship, and effectively promote Greek heritage, culture, and history,” said Kefalogianni.

Ministers and representatives of the Orthodox Church signing the protocol of cooperation.

The minister went on to add that Greece’s 13 regions can all develop religious tourism products which in turn will attract tourists all year round.

“Faith tourism is an integral part of the Greek tourism product which can bring significant benefits to the national economy and especially to local communities, making a key contribution to our goal of sustainable tourism development,” she said.

“The updated protocol outlines special and general actions, planning and implementation of joint actions for the protection and promotion of religious monuments, the production of promotional material including publications, films, and other projects, the creation of an archive of the most important pilgrimage sites in Greece, as well as promotional actions through media outlets and official websites,” said Rapti.