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Royal Olympia Cruises, Greece’s only international player in the sector, has been forced by creditors to auction off its two star vessels, Olympia Voyager (launched June, 2000) and Olympia Explorer (launched April, 2002).

Presently, four of Greece’s major ferry routes — Dodekanissos, Cylades, Argosaronikos, Crete — fulfill the requirements for complete liberation when discussions are finalized between Greece’s merchant marine ministry and the European Commission.

Attica Enterprises announced last month that Atlantic Navigazione of Grimaldi Group, Napoli, has entered into an agreement with its wholly owned subsidiary Superfast Ferries to acquire the fast ferry Superfast I.

The newest ferry vessel on the Piraeus-Chania route, the Blue Star 2, has managed to sail ahead of all its competitors. For the month of December, Blue Star 2 increased travel on the route by some 43% and increased cargo transport by about 31%, when compared with the same month the year before.

Legislation was tabled in parliament recently that if passed would modernize Greece’s 1920 legislation regarding spa tourism. Government says the new legislation would create a solid base for the development of spa tourism in Greece by both the public and private sector.

If we want the Greek tourism sector to develop at a satisfactory pace, we in the private sector must take it upon ourselves to do so, said speakers at the recent “The Need to Create a Tourism Development Strategy” conference held last month in Athens.

The ITB Travel Technology Congress will take place this year from March 14 to 16 in Hall 7.1b during Germany’s ITB travel fair. The opening event, on Sunday, March 14, will examine the opportunities for an upturn in the travel market in 2004, which could be brought about as a result of structural changes. Among the main issues to be dealt with by this congress is the extent to which the Internet will continue to influence the tourism market. Do opportunities still exist for package tours or will they be replaced by the services offered by low cost carriers? Is “dynamic packaging” the answer to the increasing individualization of travel? When will the traditional travel catalogues finally disappear from travel agents’ shelves?

Greece’s tourism fair Philoxenia 2003, October 30-November 2, arrived and left this year with little fanfare. For the most part, exhibitors simply said that like every other year the exhibition gives us a chance to see some old friends and business acquaintances. But this year, they said it seemed there were fewer exhibitors than last year and much less traffic to the stands.

After last year’s fiasco, the London office of the Hellenic Tourism Organization worked closely with the head office this year. In the end, the office and its staff did a superior job in organizing its Greek presentation at one of the world’s biggest travel and tourism fairs, World Travel Market, held in London from November 10-13.

A special inter-ministerial meeting on the Olympic Games last month reiterated promises to render Athens more compatible with the needs of physically disabled people ahead of next September’s Paralympics.