Hotels & Accommodations

Athens’ hotel occupancy in February caused optimism, but also concern, to hoteliers as overnights in five- and four-star hotels recorded an increase while two- and three-star hotels saw a significant decrease.

The Research Institute for Tourism (ITEP) recently presented its latest study on the ghettoization of part of the historic center of Athens and its consequences on the economic life of the city during an event organized by the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels.

The Golden Coast Hotel, situated close to the historic town of Marathon, Attica, and in very close distance to Nea Makri, announced last month that in 2012 it would operate as an all inclusive resort.

Greek hotels continued to lose ground last year while international competition showed clear signs of growth, but Greek tourism’s declining trend saw signs of resistance, recent figures released by GBR Consulting said.

Athens Mayor George Kaminis held a meeting last month with Culture and Tourism Minister Pavlos Geroulanos at City Hall and discussed opportunities for the development of tourism in the Greek capital, according to a press release issued by the ministry.

The Sheraton Rhodes Resort, located on Rodos and in close distance of the island’s historic town, will welcome guests as of 1 April following an extensive two million euros renovation project.

The average occupancy rate of hotels in Thessaloniki last year showed a decline of 13 percent compared to 2009 thus closing 2010 at 42 percent, the president of the Thessaloniki Hotels Association, Aristotelis Thomopoulos, said last month during the association’s annual pita cutting ceremony.

Centrally located hotel Classical Acropol on Omonia Square was recently closed down due to Greece’s economic crisis, according to an announcement of the Daskalantonakis Group in late January. The group controls the Grecotel chain of hotels.

Some 1,500 small hotel units with a capacity of less than 10 rooms are threatened with prosecution by the Self-Employed Workers’ Insurance Organization (OAEE) for non-payment of contributions, according to the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels.

The Attica Holiday Inn Hotel rang in the New Year with a new name and new logo. The hotel is now an airport hotel and has been renamed Holiday Inn Athens Airport.