Hospitality News

Over 22,000 Athens homes have been offered for rental to foreign visitors during this summer’s Olympics, officials managing the program said last month.

Greek hoteliers described tourism as being at its lowest ebb in 30 years, “and the government is doing nothing to help,” said Vassilis Miniades, president of the Panhellenic Hoteliers’ Association, during a recent press call.

Government and Olympic organizers have failed to properly advertise Athens as an international tourist destination, hoteliers complained during a recent press conference. “They encouraged us to invest heavily in order to boost the capital’s hotel infrastructure ahead of the 2004 Games but they have not held their promise to promote the city,” said the president of the Attica Hoteliers Association, Girogos Tsakiris.

Greek hoteliers are not ready to adopt the automatic star categorization system suggested by government quarters: Government wants hoteliers to declare a star system category for their units by year-end through a simple signed declaration.

The recent increase in new hotels in the Attica area is responsible for the reduction in overnights by member units of the Attica Hoteliers Association, according to the Academy of Tourism Research and Studies.

Greek hoteliers continue efforts to pressure government quarters to change depreciation rates for tax purposes from 4% to the 8% it was some two years ago. Representatives from Greek Hotel Chamber and the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises say they are very disappointed that Economy Minister Nikos Christodoulakis and Development Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos have not kept their promises to return the rate to 8%.

Greece’s national economy ministry last month urged banks to initiate a program of “good faith” concerning all rules of law that concern old loans owed to them by Greek hoteliers.

Sabre Travel Network brings to Europe its Sabre Exclusives hotels program, which was launched in the U.S. last year. The company will negotiate discounted rates with participating hotels and make these available through the Sabre global distribution system to its network of travel agency customers.

An innovative pilot project, supported by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA), could revolutionize travel in the U.S. by maximizing security while minimizing inconveniences imposed on travelers.

Sometimes, not often, publications receive promotional material that makes the reader sit up and take notice. Over the years Greek Travel Pages has received carloads of various Greek tourism-related brochures and publications from both home and abroad. Last month the publication picked up what it considers Greece’s most stylish, rich and almost perfectly designed and produced tourism publication, which was created by the hotel Grande Bretagne.