Trade Associations

“The Thessaloniki Convention and Visitors Bureau (TCVB) excels as a destination choice for conference organizers and ICTP (International Council of Tourism Partners) is proud to have it join as a destination member,” ICTP Chairman Juergen T. Steinmetz said in late July.

“A solution to the bankruptcies of airlines is vital,” the Hellenic Association of Travel and Tourist Agencies (HATTA) said last month citing a statement released by the European Travel Agents and Tour Operators Associations (ECTAA), whose members include HATTA, in regards to the bankruptcy of Spanair and Malev.

“If Thessaloniki is excluded by air travel then the city will be unable to spread its wings and attract more potential visitors, especially at a time when hopes to boost the Greek economy have turned to tourism,” the Thessaloniki Hotels Association recently said.

Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni approved and announced the Greek National Tourism Organization’s (GNTO) new Board of Directors on Thursday 30 August, which is comprised by five lawyers, one political analyst, one doctor, one dentist and one hotelier.

The re-establishment of the new Tourism Ministry in June was welcomed by the vast majority of Greek tourism professionals who are expecting a series of chronic issues to be solved by the new leadership.

Anastasios Liaskos is the new secretary general of tourism. He was born in Athens in 1957 and is an economist and business development consultant by profession.

“The Greek tourism market was significantly affected by the political uncertainty that intensified after the (first) elections of 6 May,” the president of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels, Yiorgos Tsakiris, said at a recent press conference.

The simplification of the procedure for issuing Schengen visas to increase the inflow of tourists to Greece and the protection of the country’s image via crisis management, were two priorities on the agenda of Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni last month.

The number of passengers that disembarked on Greek cruise destinations from circular cruises that homeported in Greece continued to drop in 2011, according to a report presented during the sixth annual conference of the European Cruise Council (ECC) in Brussels.

“While recognizing the sovereign right of States to control the entry of foreign nationals, we will work towards developing travel facilitation initiatives in support of job creation, quality work, poverty reduction and global growth,” according to the Leaders’ Declaration from the annual meeting of the G20 held 18-19 June in Los Cabos, Mexico.