In efforts to stem terrorism and organized crime and improve border protection and migration management, the European Commission has announced a new action plan aimed at enhancing the security of travel documents.
Enhancing security and facilitating travel in order to ensure sustainable growth of travel and tourism is the top priority for the Global Travel Association Coalition (GTAC), which released a statement on occasion of the World Travel Market (WTM) London 2016.
Despite growing arrival numbers, Greek tourism has failed to meet expectations with the balance of travel services marking an 8.8 percent drop in the first eight months of 2016 against last year, according to data released by the Bank of Greece.
In order for the Greek tourism sector to continue on its path to growth and remain competitive, investments in infrastructure amounting to 6.5 billion euros are required through to 2021, according to the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE).
In view of forecasts for a 30 percent drop in cruise tourism to Greece in 2017, South Aegean Governor George Hatzimarkos recently met with Cosco management at the Piraeus Port Authority, to discuss ways to address the issue.
Despite promising arrival figures to Greece, tourists are not digging into their pockets, according to Bank of Greece data release on Tuesday, indicating a 3.5 percent drop in travel receipts, down by 100 million euros, for July compared to the same month in 2015.
As part of a ongoing strategy to promote all-year-round tourism, the North and South Aegean regions are participating this year at the TourNatur expo taking place September 2-4 in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Travel & Tourism is the third biggest employer after retail and agriculture, according to new research from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). In 2014, the travel and tourism industry supported 277 million jobs which is 9.4 percent of world employment.
