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Greece once again ranked second place on the Blue Flag quality award list among 48 countries with seven beaches more compared to 2011, according to information provided recently by the Hellenic Society for the Protection of Nature.

Greek hotels, accredited by the “Green Key” program for 2012, will be presented to seven European countries this fall via a promotional campaign scheduled to run October 2012-April 2013.

Yacht reservations dropped some 30 percent in May only, compared with the same period in 2011, while the industry expected better results from last minute bookings, according to the general secretary of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE), George Vernicos.

The Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) launched initiatives last month that aimed to change the negative climate that is impacting the country’s tourism industry in the international travel market. True …

With Costa Cruises homeporting this summer in Heraklion (Crete), leading international cruise officials have expressed optimism in choosing the cruise destination as a homeport for non-European Union flag cruise ships now that the cabotage law has been lifted in Greece.

State protectionism is a stumbling block that discourages the potential growth of Greece’s sea tourism, according to heads of international cruise sector bodies, senior officials from Greece’s port authorities and cruising industry who attended the Cruise Update Seminar held on the sidelines of shipping trade event Posidonia 2012 last month.

The 23rd Posidonia International Shipping Exhibition held 4-8 June, displayed a positive image of Greece and sent a strong message to the world at large that Greek shipowning remains a strong position despite the downturn in global shipping and economic woes of southern Europe.

Although Greece in the midst of its fifth year of recession, Amadeus tells us that travel agents are not held back from pursuing online business opportunities.

The Monemvasia Tourism Promotion Committee recently organized a familiarization tour to Monemvasia for Greek tourism journalists and introduced them to the highlights and advantages of the municipality: a one of a kind castletown, rich history, natural beauty, gastronomic products, seaside destinations… There is no doubt that Monemvasia is an ideal destination suitable for year-round visits.

Singapore Airlines will cease routes to Athens as of 26 October 2012 due to “sustained weak performance,” the Greek travel industry was informed last month. This was just the most recent hit as many carriers have already announced plans to stop direct flights to the Greek capital.