Athens has re-established itself as a leading, sustainable and safe tourist destination
Athens after the pandemic was re-established as a leading, sustainable and safe tourist destination in the new era and its good reputation is reaped in the management of Covid-19. This is emphasized by the managing director of the Development and Tourism Promotion Company of the Municipality of Athens, Vangelis Vlachos, at the Athenian-Macedonian News Agency. In fact, he points out that the first data show that Athens can reach the number of visitors in 2019. “The mood of both visitors and Athenians is to meet again and live the unique experiences that the city offers,” he says. At a time when the city was not receiving significant tourist flows due to the pandemic, EATA was launching actions that would work so well for the benefit of traffic. At this point, Mr. Vlachos notes that cities have now become a common place for residents, workers, digital nomads and visitors. “We no longer follow the traditional separation of residents and visitors. We believe that we improve the quality of life of the inhabitants, we create an even more attractive destination “. To impose the above in Athens on May 31, the “This is Athens City Festival”, the first open, spring festival of the Municipality of Athens, is completed, which so far, Athenians and women have embraced with enthusiasm, surpassing even the most optimistic estimates, he emphasizes. Mr. Vlachos. “Almost all the actions are sold-out or full of people and in fact in many different parts of the city. “And that was the bet, to introduce corners of the city that were either not known to the general public or had different uses,” he says.
At the same time, the 8th edition of Travel Trade Athens took place in the previous period with a physical presence, bringing in contact more than 170 representatives of Greek and international companies from the wider tourism and events sector. In fact, the planned B2B meetings exceeded 1,400 and the main goal was through them to conclude as many possible agreements for collaborations that will strengthen the city’s economy in the future, noted in APE-MPE the managing director of the Development and Tourism Promotion Company of the Municipality . Athenian.
“Hollywood” is coming to Athens
Special mention, moreover, should be made for the Athens Film Office (AFO), as since March 2020 it has participated, so that to date, 70 international and domestic productions have chosen Athens for their shooting, gradually turning the capital into “Cinema city”. Mr. Vlachos reminds that two important derivatives that will be released in cinemas soon: Disney’s Hollywood Rise on the Life of Giannis Antitokoumpos and David Cronenberg’s most cinephile Crimes of the Future.
“Athens is now established as a cinematic destination with great for the promotion of the city and the local economy. “And this summer our city hosts important productions”, underlines Mr. Vlachos. It is characteristic that on June 10, the shooting of the Greek Salad, the great French production of Amazon Prime, which was shot entirely in Athens, will end, while the shooting of the English musical Greatest Days has just ended. At the same time, in June, the big production of Nia Vardalos starts, the third in a row in the franchise of My big fat Greek Wedding with derivatives of Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, informs Mr. Vlachos.
The extroversion actions of the city are in full swing
The extroversion of Athens in the previous period included actions of its promotion in big international exhibitions. Specifically, in the two years EATA has participated in the last 26 international exhibitions and plans the presence of the city in 12 more by the end of the year. According to Mr. Vlachos, EATA has participated and organized more than 50 international seminars and conferences, while hosting more than 60 representatives – conference organizers, journalists and representatives of tourism.
Regarding the conference tourism that has been significantly affected by the pandemic, Mr. Vlachos states that the methodical work and the good cooperation of the municipality with the institutional and productive bodies but also the companies of the private sector, show that the upward trend of the city was interrupted only temporarily, which is confirmed by the recent ranking of Athens for 2022 as the top destination for conferences and meetings in Europe and as the fifth in the world in a relevant survey by American Express Meetings & Events. In addition, just a few days ago, Athens was named the top European conference destination by the Business Destinations Travel Awards, according to Mr. Vlachos, who was also elected a member of the Board of Directors of the Destination Cities Alliance. As explained, this is an important network of cities for Destination Management and Promotion Organizations as well as Conference Offices throughout Europe. “This position strengthens the role of the city in shaping new policies but also gives us the opportunity to work with other European cities to change know-how and good practices,” he said.
“Now is the time to say it up close”: Athens’s new summer campaign
The promotion of Athens in the international markets never stopped, even during the lockdown period, Mr. Vlachos reminds. In fact, for this summer, the campaign that EATA will run in the markets is entitled: “Now is the time to say it up close”.
“Hoping that we are going through only the last days that the coronavirus will occupy me, we are already preparing the campaign for September which will aim to attract time to Athens. And of course we are constantly producing new material from the city in order to bring content for our guide thisisathens.org but also for individual promotion and promotion actions “, Mr. Vlachos emphasizes.
The Americans return to Athens
Athens, which this year is ready to welcome its citizens, special mention should be made of the important arrivals of Americans, something that has been pointed out by the competent Minister of Tourism Vassilis Kikilias. For his part, Mr. Vlachos points out that before the pandemic, the USA was the strongest tourist market for Athens airport. In 2019, a record year for Greek tourism, 694,362 arrivals from the USA were recorded. In the same year, Britain, Germany and France followed suit.
Last year, despite the spread of Covid-19, since the opening of the US limited market within the quarter, arrivals picked up so fast that the Americans finished second in the race for “Eleftherios Venizelos”, close to 300,000 arrivals, when the Germans approached 340,000, informs Mr. Vlachos. At the same time, according to the data of the Bank of Greece, the receipts from tourists coming from the USA in 2021 jumped to 607 million euros. (Americans have doubled their average per capita expenditure per trip to about $ 1,500, excluding airline tickets and accommodation), he notes.
It is also very important that this year many air carriers from the USA and Canada invested in Athens as a destination. According to Mr. Vlachos, earlier than every other year (at 8) the first direct flight of DELTA from the USA arrived at the Athens International Airport.
DELTA offers more flights than ever between Athens and the United States. Among them a new one to Boston, 11 to New York and one daily to Atlanta. Similarly, American Airlines added more US travel options between Greece and Chicago and Philadelphia with flights, increasing the company’s operations in Athens by 47% compared to 2021. Finally, Air Canada resumed direct flights this year from our city to Montreal and Toronto earlier than ever.
Thisisathens.org for a virtual visit to Athens
For those of our potential citizens who finally come to Athens, Mr. Vlachos advises them to “enjoy the experience”. Athens is a modern capital, open and hospitable, with hundreds of activities and points of interest for permanent residents and cities alike. It would be impossible for someone to see it all in 4-5 days, or to really live a little like a local. That does not mean it is not worth the effort. Finally, he suggests starting with a visit to Thisisathens.org to find what fits.
Source: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ
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