By Alexia Sotiriou

 

 

Encouraging for Greece are the first messages coming from ITB, the International Tourism Exhibition that is being held these days in Berlin.

 

It is the largest tourist exhibition in the world, with the participation of leading tour operators. Greece is represented by the Minister of Tourism, Olga Kefalogianni, the General Secretary of the Greek National Tax Agency, Dimitris Fragakis, while at 1,000 sq.m. the Greek pavilion hosts 85 exhibitors, municipalities, regions and of course tourist businesses.

 

The TUI group, Europe's largest tour operator, expects a new record for this year for Greece, with Crete, Rhodes and Kos being high on travelers' preferences.

 

Minister of Tourism, Olga Kefalogianni, pointed out that "2024 is predicted to be another excellent year for Greece and Greek tourism. The messages we receive," she added, "despite the difficulties that exist in the international environment, are positive." She also noted that Greece has the maturity, the plan, the will to open a new page of development for Greek tourism, with an emphasis on sustainability, moderation, balance. As she pointed out, this is a positive and modern message that Greece sends to the international markets, which finds a positive response from everyone.

 

Ms.Kefalogianni had important working meetings with her political counterparts, top executives from the tourism market and media representatives at the international exhibition. During her meeting with her Saudi Arabian counterpart Ahmed Al Khateeb and the country's Deputy Minister of Tourism Haifa bint Muhammad Al Saud, they agreed to update the cooperation agreement signed in 2014 and draw up a cooperation framework for the future.

 

Speaking to DW, the representative of TUI, Suzanne Stynkel, said that it will be a very good tourist year . "We see a strong start in bookings and expect another very good season for Greece. Already for the summer of 2024, Crete and Rhodes are recording high demand. Corfu and Kos are also among the most booked tourist destinations in Greece." 

 

TUI's tourism program for Greece includes 24 Greek regions in both mainland and island Greece with over 4,500 hotels included in its packages. In addition to the classic top destinations, the small Greek islands are also of particular interest in terms of tourist traffic, while Zakynthos, Santorini and Samos are attractive for individual travelers who wish to spend holiday in more than one destination.