Greek Tourism is on ‘Excellent Course’, Kountoura says

After two record years, Greek tourism is on an “excellent course” in 2017 with an impressive increase in all tourism figures, Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura said during the inauguration ceremony of the 1st Greek Travel Show exhibition on Friday.

Held over the weekend at the Helexpo Maroussi convention center in Athens, the 1st Greek Travel Show focused on domestic tourism and was organized by Greece’s national exhibition body TIF-Helexpo.

According to Minister Kountoura, domestic tourism has recovered since 2016 and sees the tourism ministry and the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) cooperating with the country’s regions and the private sector for its promotion. Kountoura also referred to her ministry’s “excellent” cooperation with the Ministry of Labor on the social tourism programs for the Greeks.

“We aim for all Greeks to travel in their country, to get to know each destination, its history, its people and local products and of course to enjoy the beauty and incomparable hospitality of our country, she said.

Moreover, the tourism minister referred to the target for Greece to become a 365 days a year tourism destination through the ministry’s successful tourism policy and the strategic choice to develop thematic tourism.

“Our aim is to motivate a new tourism activity, additional revenues and employment as well as new investments in popular and new Greek destinations that we are promoting for the profit to be allocated to the local economies throughout Greece all year round,” she said.

She also applauded the contribution of tourism and travel exhibitions and underlined that the ministry and the GNTO will support any initiative that promotes Greece’s tourism product.