‘Greece Offers Great Experiences,’ says Russian Cosmonaut Novitskiy

Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy and Greek Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura.

Russian cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy on Wednesday applauded Greece for “the great experiences it offers”, during a meeting with Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura in Athens.

Autographed photo of Novitskiy for Minister Kountoura.

Novitsky is currently in Greece taking part in a special physical rehabilitation program after his many-month expedition to the International Space Station (ISS). He is the fifth Russian cosmonaut to visit Greek destinations to receive physical and medical rehabilitation treatment through the country’s specific programs.

During the meeting, Minister Kountoura and Novitsky discussed the Greek hospitality programs for cosmonauts as well as the great advantages Greece offers throughout the year due to the ideal climate, the attractive environment and the high level of specialized services.

Novitskiy gave Minister Kountoura an autographed poster of his recent expedition on which he mentions “the great experiences Greece offers”.

Kountoura referred to the close relations of the peoples of Greece and Russia, the dynamic development of tourism between the two countries and the significant increased interest of Russians to visit Greece by including the country among its top holiday preferences for 2017. She also invited Novitsky to visit Greece again with his family for a holiday.

“Greece in recent years has become an increasingly popular choice for providing rehabilitation treatment for Russian cosmonauts as it allows them to ideally combine medical and therapeutic services with holidays,” the Tourism Ministry said in an announcement.