General Events & Happenings

Olympic Airways marked its 50-year anniversary with the publication of a special edition photographic album entitled “50 Years Olympic Airways-The Aircraft we Flew.”

Business entrepreneur and general manager of the Pantazis group, Antonis Pantazis, recently held an even to officially inaugurate the new “Pantazis Royal Conference Center” that opened in July 2007.

Members of the travel industry in support of breast cancer awareness month (October) took two initiatives recently. Delta Air Line’s employees and customers showed their support and raised money for the cause as did the hotel Grande Bretagne in Athens in cooperation with Estee Lauder cosmetics and the ministry of health and social solidarity.

The Ukrainian Travel and Tourism Show UITT, to be held in March 2008 at the International Exhibition Center in Kiev, has seen a dramatic increase in interest from both local and international companies.

The Attica Hotel Association recently held its 38th annual assembly where its members revealed and discussed statistics for 2007. The assembly was opened by the president of the association, George Tsakiris, who began by referring to 2006 as “an overall successful year for the hotel industry.”

“Loud heartbeats will be heard throughout the city of Athens in the new year with the opening of the public art event Hearts in Athens in 2008,” Cultural Organization for the Municipality of Athens Chairwoman Sophie Daskalaki announced at a press conference held recently.

The Hellenic Association of Travel & Tourist Agencies celebrated its eightieth anniversary at Costas Lazaridi’s Oinotria Land, which also celebrated 15 years since its creation. The event was held on the eve of world tourism day and was attended by the secretary general of the National Tourism Organization, Athanasios Oikonomou, representatives from all areas of the tourism sector and journalists in the field of tourism and travel.

Chinese magazine “You Are What You Eat” recently published a six-page article on Greek food and beverages, with emphasis on Greek olive oil, in its September issue. The article followed a road trip of the magazine’s journalist around Greece where he visited Athens, Peloponissos and Crete.

On the occasion of World Tourism Day 2007 a think tank was hosted in Bentota (Sri Lanka) supported by the World Tourism Organization under the theme “Tourism Opening Doors for Women.”

British Airways recently revealed that Greece is one of the most popular European destinations this summer and on the same par as Paris, Rome, Nice, Madrid and Barcelona.