2 | [NEWS]
NEWS contents
Hotels and medicines
Hellenic Chamber of Hotels: the reduction of VAT will
result in 630 mill Euro increase
SETE The VAT reduction is an essential growth measure
If the current situation improves and highlight
the correct destination for foreign markets,
Athens will recover quickly
Paul Geroulanos "Athens has it"
Philoxenia Tourism Awards 2010
Αn academic week in tourism for Lettonians professors
in Thessaloniki
HAPCO's participation in 26th Philoxenia
Creativity Award to Olympic Air
The "DISCOVER AMERICA" Literature Promotion Pavilion
at the Philoxenia Tourism Exhibition 2010
UNWTO and the International Labour Organization join
efforts to fight a jobless recovery
The Hotel Grande Bretagne has once again been
included in the prestigious Condé Nast Traveler magazine
‘Best Hotels List’ as voted by their readers.
WTM 2010 Experiences 10% Increase in Visitors
MICE Day at ITB Berlin 2011 in cooperation with the
Association of German Event Organisers has tips
for event planners
“Travelling” Promotes greek travel and tourism
Visiting details for Christmas Magic City - Thessaloniki
Awards 2010 - Doha Aviation Summit” -
“Airport of the Year” award goes to Athens
International Airport
easyJet new flexible fares for passengers who
travel for business purposes
Travelport announced the recent relaunching of
its website “Travelport Leisure”
Abu Dhabi International Airport records 16% increase
in visitors during F1 season
Lufthansa expanding flight services this winter
“World’s Leading Airline” for second year running
Let it us be nice and calm on the
surface and paddle like crazy
under water
4
4 of
But one may ask, “is the reduction
4 The past month we had the two most t
i- the VAT so significant, that will boos
important travel and tourism exhib ce's touri sm in the upco ming
d Gree
tions for Greece's tourism. Worl yes,
xe- year, one handed?” Probably
Travel Market in London and Philo and
can probably no, and do we stay calm
5 nia in Thessaloniki. As long as we we
sa- wait to see? For the time being
5 remember we first went to Thes ns
it have not seen any additional actio
loniki and then to London, this year will comp leme nt or supp leme nt
way arou nd. Prob ably it that
6 was the other -
had the effect of the VAT. Not that every
was the only year we should have that
thing is idle but we would assume
started with Thessaloniki. ent
6 the VAT is a significant developm
and
6 i- that we can take one step forward
The reason is that during the exhib
6
xenia it was anno unce d that ensure that we have a great 2011
tion Philo the
n tourism season – one that will help
the tourism VAT for accommodatio -
bet- Greek economy get out of the hard
will be reduced. Maybe it was for
7 ship of the past several years.
ter, time will show.
ac-
7 and Maybe its too early to take radical
Never the less the entire travel we have the holidays comi ng and
re- tion,
tourism industry of Greece was ad-
ion we probably don't want to reveal
lieved of the governments decis our
ase ditional aces we might have up
to reduce the VAT, rather to incre as
8 sleeve. In that case we don't mind
it even to the high rate of 23%, mak-
8 na- long as we don't sit back and wait.
ing Greece a very expensive desti
tion without adding value to its serv-
Let it be like ducks in a pond. They
ices.
look nice and calm as they go from
, but
9 all one point of the pond to the other
The news made the headlines of
9 - when you look under water they pad-
travel and tourism news media world
9 g the inter ested parti es the dle like crazy.
wide , givin
signal, that Greece is in the game
again.
Hellenic Travelling
VAT
10 In dead, the reduction of the
Gree ce a comp etitive advantage ,
gives
two
10 which it had lost for the past
-
years, if not more, and the tour oper
ss
10 ators have got the message. Unle
something totally unpredictable hap-
10 pens, Greece should have a very good
2011 tourism season.
11
11
 [NEWS] | 3

Athens Training and Development Center

ACS Athens and Athens Training

and
Development Center

will provide students and professionals with the

opportunity to learn online Marketing strategies.

These skills will translate into real life applications.

Additionally, participants are eligible to sit

for the CeMA Certification Examination in February 2011
once they have successfully completed the four required courses.

For inquires call Tel.: 210 800 1029 to arrange a meeting

with a representative of the Athens Training & Development Center,
E-mail: info@athenstrainingcenter.gr, Web site: www.athenstrainingcenter.gr

www.travelling.gr
Δηλώσεις συμμετοχής και πληροφορίες σχετικά με το 9ο Συνέδριο του ΣΕΤΕ μπορείτε να βρείτε στο www.seteconferences.gr
4 | [NEWS]
6.5% VAT RATE FOR
HOTELS AND MEDICINES
Minister of Finance Mr. G. Papakonstantinou
In 2011, Greece will continue its intensive financial effort, in
short-term objectives of the economic policy program. The Gov-
ernment will not change its target for the amount of the deficit
in 2011 thus they will not reduce the speed of the planned fis-
cal adjustment in order to achieve de-escalation of the state
debt by 2013. The deficit target in 2011 is 17 billion Euro or 7.4%
of GDP, a reduction of 5 billion Euro compared to 2010 or 2% of
GDP.
To achieve this goal the size of the budgetary effort will be made
through the old and new interventions exceeding 14 billion eu-
ros. The additional fiscal effort needed - in relation to the origi-
nal plan - will be covered almost entirely by structural meas-
ures and targeted interventions to streamline costs and reduce
waste in areas like health supplies, drug costs and utilities, and
by specific interventions to boost public revenues to combat tax
evasion and the use of public property.
The measures contained in the Programme for Economic Poli-
cy have to reassess their performance and the measure for the
mass transfer of products from the low VAT rate of 11% to 23%
rate replaced by an increase of only a low rate by 2 percentage
points - from 11 % to 13% or so from 5.5% to 6.5% - while reduc-
ing the VAT rate to 6.5% for hotels and on drugs and the equation
of NCI heating oil and fuel together with the grant 400 million
euros annually for heating allowance.
HELLENIC CHAMBER OF
HOTELS: THE REDUCTION
OF VAT WILL RESULT IN 630
MILL EURO INCREASE
From left Mr. K. Reres from ITEP, Mr George Tsakiris, Chairman of
the Board of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels (HCH), and Mr. D. Chio-
nis, General Manager of ITEP.
The decrease of the touristic VAT by 4.5% on the accommodation
will result in a significant promotional factor for the competitive-
ness of Greek tourism.
It is noteworthy that with this decrease, the differentiation of prices
is eliminated in comparison to its major competitor countries,
which took advantage of this the last couple of years.
The reduction of VAT has a result in increasing the peripheral in-
come and supports employment in Greece. At the same time it
contributes to the countries GNP.
According to a first assessment from the Institute of Tourism Re-
search and Forecast – a research body of the Hellenic Chamber of
From left Mr. N. Kanellopoulos, GNTO President, Mr. A. Andreadis,
POX President, Mr. Sp. Galiatsatos, POX Vice President and Ms
Christina Tetradis, member of the board of Directors and responsi-
ble for Public Relations of Hellenic Chamber of Hotels .
Hotels – the reduction will contribute by at least 630 million Euro
from the increase of incoming tourism revenue.
It is also noted that in these economic conditions the reduction of
VAT for accommodation will give a boost in total to the demand for
the Greek tourism product and will act as a multiplier in the de-
velopment of the counties picture to foreign markets, at a difficult
period of time for the image of the destination.
SETE THE VAT REDUCTION
IS AN ESSENTIAL GROWTH
MEASURE
SETE welcomes the Government's decided to transfer the VAT on
tourist accommodation on the part of the residence by a percetage
of 11% or 13% to 6.5%.
This measure is a first and important developmental measure of
the government, which came after discovering that the excessive
VAT did not have a psitive effect on the public finance, in contrast
it resulted in decresing the the public revenue along with decrease
in the revenues of the individual companies as a result of decrease
in demand. It is known that the contracts signed in tourism com-
panies are based on gross prices, one year before each subse-
quent season, hence the reversal upwards of VAT in 2010 and to
perpetuate the system of non-competitive rate compared to oth-
er Mediterranean countries, resulted in a decrease in revenues of
all businesses in the tourism sector, many of which already
ekinounto marginally in the very bad year in 2009.
came after the discovery that the excessive rate of VAT, while it
gave the public finances, instead resulted in a reduction of rev-
enue in the government and individual companies by reducing de-
mand. It is known that the contracts signed in tourism companies
are based on gross prices, one year before each subsequent sea-
son, hence the increase of VAT in 2010 and the non-competitive
rate compared to other Mediterranean countries, resulted in a de-
crease in revenues of all businesses in the tourism sector, many
of which already marginally as a result of the very bad year in
2009.
It is also clear now, even to the government, and this is evident
from the reduction of the VAT for the tourism packages, that the
sensitive in price changes in the tourism sector when the VAT rate
is double that of the competition, is left unable to contribute to the
public finance and to employment.
Eventually this important developmental measure will soon have
positive spillover effect in other sectors of the economy. It is now
documented and undeniable that each unit consumed in tourism
creates another secondary consumption in the rest of the econo-
my as a result, the significant increase of the final revenue from
VAT, but also beneficial effects on employment for which the coun-
try is being put under strain.
The position of SETE is that the adjustment of VAT at a competitive
level should be extended generally to all other sectors of the

tourism economy that along with accommodation make up the
complete tour package to Greece. Such as marine tourism, trav-
el agencies and tourist transportation.
IF THE CURRENT SITUATION
IMPROVES AND HIGHLIGHT
THE CORRECT DESTINATION
FOR FOREIGN MARKETS,
ATHENS WILL RECOVER
QUICKLY
"The name of Athens, sometimes praised and sometimes vili-
fied, positive or negative happening to the capital or in Greece.
On the other hand, Athens is a multifaceted and modern prod-
uct, having ceased to be solely at the mercy of moods and tour
operators.
Addressed to many different parts of the world market (such as
leisure, corporate, conferences, cruises, etc.) and having prob-
lems, but infinite possibilities. So, if the current situation im-
proves and highlight the correct destination for foreign markets,
Athens will recover quickly - it has nothing to fear and is not a
subject to any dispositions.
This was the central and hopeful message sent by the 41st An-
nual General Meeting of hoteliers in Athens - Attica (which took
place Tuesday 16/11/2010 at the hotel «Grande Bretagne») to the
government and political parties, local Government , tour oper-
ators and operators of tourism.
Speakers at the event were the Minister of Culture and Tourism,
Mr. Paul Geroulanos and Mrs. Olga Kefaloyiannis, Head of
Tourism Sector of New Democracy.
The minister proceeded to interesting announcements and pre-
sented the ministry for the promotion of Athens entitled
"ATHENS every week".
[NEWS] | 5
The Athens-Attica Hotel Association estimates that this program
is a comprehensive and very interesting proposal, the projec-
PAUL GEROULANOS
tion of Athens helps to restore its reputation and constitutes a "ATHENS HAS IT"
good starting point for substantive and constructive coopera-
tion between the public and private sectors.
During the Athens-Attica Hotel Association’s general assembly,
the new deluxe edition entitled "Athens - Attica: Journey to the
eternal destination, Athens-Attica: Journey to the Everlasting
Destination» was presented, created entirely from the Athens-
Attica Hotel Association and their press office, and the results
of 6 consecutive researches on "Customer Satisfaction of Attica
hotels” & “Hotel performance study” conducted this year for the
Athens-Attica Hotel Association by the consultancy company
GBR Consulting.
As pointed out in his speech the president of Athens Hotel As-
sociation Mr. John A. Retsos, "reviewing the reduction of 2009
continued into 2010, despite the optimistic start during the first President of the Hotel Association of Athens - Attica Mr. John A. Ret-
two months, then taking the form of an avalanche after the trag- sos (left), Minister of Tourism - Culture, Mr. Paul Geroulanos and
ic events of May 5. Furthermore, the systematic devaluation, es- General Secretary of the HA-A Mr. Alexander Vassilikos.
pecially down town Athens, where all forms of crime is grow-
ing exponentially during the last 5 years, with an economic cri- In a full room of hoteliers at "Grande Bretange", who face diffi-
sis are the two main reasons that led to closure of hotels, for culties with the current economic crisis and cancellations due to
the first time since the very difficult 80s. the deterioration of the city, protests, marches, the occupation
In October 2010, however, (while traffic continued its downward of the Acropolis ..., the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Paul
trend following a poor September and due to the transfer of the Geroulanos in the General Assembly of the Union of Attica Hote-
exhibition "Defendori" from Athens to Thessaloniki) weekend 29
to October 31 the hotels occupancy in the city exceeded 90% (!)
which is attributable to the Athens Marathon, demonstrating
that the use of such high-key-events positively affects only the
destination, the arrivals and revenue to the city, and the occu-
pancy of the hotels.
In his speech, Mr. John A. Retsos noted some institutional in-
terventions and announcements that gave "relief" as he said to
the industry and destinations:
1. The establishment and full implementation of the project on
"Presevation of 10,000 jobs in the hotel business operating 12
months, and through a subsidy of 40% of employer contribu-
tions. The program runs from July, and has kept the wave of
dismissals and has stoped the increase in unemployment for
the hotel workers in Athens. liers Athens, showed that not only fully informed, but that he
2. The effort of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism through the does a remarkable work with the staff of his Ministry to solve
former Secretariat of Olympic Development reaching at the fi- the problems facing the destination called Athens-Attica and
nal stages of conducting the tender for the creation of the Met- gain the prestige it deserves.
ropolitan Conference Centre, at the Athens Olympic installation Mr. Geroulanos pointed out that, “to become a hotelier in Athens
of Taekwondo in Faliro. as you are, to invest and live in this city, you must belong to a
3. Finally, the institutionalization of the lifting of the cabotage small group of people with common caracteristics: an exces-
was a standing demand of Athens-Attica Hotel Association for sive love for Athens and Attica, a different view for the city and
twenty years. a different concept for what the city can become if we al togeth-
er.
news.travelling.gr
 PB_180308: Η κα Δέσποινα Αμαραντίδου, Μέλος Δ.Σ. του HAPCO, στο βήμα του 3ου Ευρωπαϊκού Συνεδρίου Τουρισμού.

6 | [NEWS]
PHILOXENIA TOURISM CREATIVITY AWARD TO
AWARDS 2010 OLYMPIC AIR

school of P.A.P corp.

Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Paulos Geroulanos inaugu-
rated the 26th Philoxenia and the 1st HOTELIA Expro & Clean. Dur-
ing the inaugurating ceremony the “Philoxenia Tourism Awards”
were presented to the winners. The goal of the awards is to iden-
tify the most popular destinations, chosen by Greek travelers fol-
lowing and open Internet poll, which was organized by Helexpo
for the past 5 years.
The awards are as follows:
Award Category
Favorite sea destination: Samos
Favorite Mountain or vacation destination: Paleos Aghios Athana-
sios Pellas
Favorite Urban destination: Nafplion
Environmentaly Friendly destination: Lake Plastira Karditsa
Best Ski Center: Vassilitsa Grevenon
ΑN ACADEMIC WEEK IN
TOURISM FOR LETTONIANS
PROFESSORS IN
THESSALONIKI
A week of education, extracurricular activities, cultural exchange
and brain storming between professors in the academic field of
tourism took place last week in Thessaloniki by HOTELIA, the HRM
Professors visited HOTELIA and they took part of especially de-
signed agenda by P.A.P corp.
This agenda had as a task to show to the professors in tourism of
the Latvia School of Tourism the curriculum, the research fields
and the development that is being executed in Greece and to de-
crease the gap between the countries of European Union in the
academic field of Tourism.
Special emphasis in the agenda had the digital library, the on line
reservation systems and the on line ordering of the catering de- Olympic Air was awarded at the 26th International Tourism Ex-
partments. hibition, PHILOXENIA, Best Creativity for their comprehensive,
This was the beginning of a series of internationally acclaimed ed-
ucational programs between the countries members of the Euro-
pean Community.
HAPCO'S PARTICIPATION
IN 26TH PHILOXENIA
functional and aesthetically impeccable organization of the
stand. Philoxenia took place in Thessaloniki from November 18
to 21, 2010 at the International Exhibition Center Helexpo, under
the auspices of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Olympic Air was the only airline company of the 320 exhibitors
of Philoxenia to be honored with an award. Companies and or-
ganizations from Greece, Egypt, Albania, Brazil, Bulgaria,
HAPCO's participation in 26th Philoxenia, 18-21 November 2010
Ghana, India, Cyprus, Russia, Serbia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey and
USA participated at the 26th International Tourism Exhibition.
proved to be an excellent opportunity to communicate with travel
and tourism professionals outside Athens. The HAPCO stand was Olympic Air was awarded by the President and CEO of Helexpo
Mr. Parry Mavridis. Among the visitors of Olympic Air stand
visited by travel and tourism professionals, in search of coopera-
tion with the association and its members, while it was very in- were the Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Paul Geroulanos
teresting for visitors to find out what about the activities of HAP- and Secretary Mr. George Nikitiadis.
CO and the news of the Greek conference industry.

THE "DISCOVER AMERICA"
LITERATURE PROMOTION
PAVILION AT THE
PHILOXENIA TOURISM
EXHIBITION 2010
The "DISCOVER AMERICA" Literature Promotion Pavilion at the
Philoxenia Tourism Exhibition 2010, organized for the first time by
the U.S. Commercial Service of the American Embassy in Athens,
Greece, attracted many regional travel and tourism executives, in
addition to a large number of visitors. The following U.S. travel and
tourism companies that featured their promotional material at the
U.S. Pavilion are eager to discuss their destinations and services.
They also look forward to welcoming Greek and regional visitors
to the United States of America.Greek travel agents and tour op-
erators interested in contacting these companies, should contact
Mrs. Irene Ralli at Irene.Ralli@trade.gov
The participating companies were:
http://www.citypass.com
CityPASS is a prepaid ticket booklet of admissions to the most
popular attractions in 11 of North America's most famous desti-
nations. CityPASS retails at a 40-50% discount from regular ticket
window prices and gives visitors nine days beginning the date of
first use to use each ticket once, making it perfect for a weekend
or week long holiday. Plus-visitors can avoid most main ticket
lines with CityPASS.
http://www.nycgo.com/
NYC & Company is New York City’s official marketing, tourism and
partnership organization. Our mission is to maximize travel and
tourism opportunities throughout the five boroughs, build eco-
nomic prosperity and spread the dynamic image of New York City
around the world.
For all there is to see and do in New York City, visit
http://www.nycgo.com/
http://www.PalmSpringsUSA.com
The Palm Springs Desert Resorts include eight unique cities that
offer luxurious resorts, pampering spas, championship golf
courses, arts & culture, designer shopping and a rich dining and
nightlife scene, all in the heart of Southern California's desert re-
gion. The desert offers year-round sunshine and breathtaking
views, enticing visitors to explore a wide selection of attractions
and outdoor adventure activities. The desert cities are a 2 hour
drive from Los Angeles and 3 ½ hour drive from Las Vegas. The
resort cities of Cathedral City, Desert Hot Springs, Indian Wells, In-
dio, La Quinta, Palm Desert, Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage, are
famous for unrivaled golf, tennis, shopping, dining, and sun-
bathing, featuring over 115 golf courses, 600 tennis courts, and
30,000 swimming pools. The perfect sunny long-haul destina-
tion!
Receptive Tour Consultants
http://www.receptivetourconsultants.com/
Receptive Tours, NYC specializes in coordinating and managing
itineraries and conducting tours for Leisure, Student, Incentive and
Corporate groups arriving in New York City. We are a tour suppli-
er offering a range of destination management services to travel
agents, and tour operators. RTC’s main objective is to market our-
selves to local group Tour Operators – as the choice Receptive Op-
erator for all of their NYC bound (and beyond) groups. Our mission
is clear... to exceed expectations by delivering superior customer
service!
International Representative in Greece:Navigator Travel and
[NEWS] | 7
Tourism Services Ltd.http://www.rccreservations.com/Royal
Caribbean is one of the most popular cruise lines in the world for
a reason! Offering a unique Royal Caribbean onboard experience
all it's own, every Royal Caribbean ship features countless on-
board amenities and activity options to make your Royal Caribbean
cruise vacation even more exciting, relaxing and unforgettable!
Royal Caribbean International is a global cruise brand with 22
ships currently in service, able to accommodate from 2.000 to
4.000 passengers, offering unique on board activities, such as
climbing, mini golf, ice skating etc.
http://www.theboatcompany.org
The Boat Company is the only conservation oriented, educational
small ship Luxury Cruise Operator in Southeast Alaska. We have
been in operation for over 30 years, providing gourmet meals, hik-
ing, fishing, kayaking, wildlife viewing and relaxation. We are an
all- inclusive tour operator, with all activities, food and beverages,
etc. included in the cost of the trip. We run 8 day, 7 night cruises
between Juneau and Sitka Alaska from Mid-May through Mid-
September. We are the choice for discerning travelers.
UNWTO AND THE
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR
ORGANIZATION JOIN
EFFORTS TO FIGHT
A JOBLESS RECOVERY
UNWTO and the International Labour Organization (ILO) are work-
ing together towards the common objectives of job creation, sus-
tained growth and fair globalization through decent work in
tourism, the UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, has under-
lined at the ILO Global Dialogue Forum on New Developments and
Challenges in the Hospitality and Tourism Sector (Geneva,
Switzerland, 23-24 November).
“Tourism has the potential to become a major generator of jobs
after the crisis,” said ILO Director-General, Mr Juan Somavia, be-
fore the meeting, adding that “social dialogue between govern-
ments, employers and workers can ensure that the jobs generat-
ed will be decent. Such dialogue is particularly important for a
service industry like tourism, where success depends so much
on service quality, which, in turn, goes hand in hand with a skilled
and motivated workforce”.
Opening the meeting alongside Mr Somavia, Mr Rifai, stated that
the recent global economic crisis brought with it the opportunity
news.travelling.gr
8 | [NEWS]
for the two organizations to work together towards “a real part-
nership for tourism”.
“At a time when we must all unite our efforts to face the major
challenge of a jobless recovery, tourism can create jobs and dis-
tribute them across the economy and nations like few other sec-
tors”, said Mr Rifai. “Given its labour-intensive nature, tourism
caters for different degrees of skills, and often provides employ-
ment opportunities for the most vulnerable segments of the pop-
ulation such as rural communities, youth and women” he added.
Tourism’s contribution to employment is estimated in the order of
6-7% of the overall number of jobs worldwide. In 2009, it is esti-
mated that tourism generated around 225 million direct and indi-
rect jobs. As such, tourism provides crucial opportunities for fair
income, social protection, gender equality, personal development
and social inclusion, central objectives of both UNWTO and the ILO.
Tourism is also one of the most resilient economic activities. In
the first six months of 2010, UNWTO reported that international
tourist arrivals grew by 7% against the 4% decline of 2009. It is par-
ticularly relevant that hotels and restaurants were among the few
activities worldwide where global employment levels did not de-
cline in 2009.
The Forum brought together over 150 government, employers’
and workers’ delegates from more than 50 countries to evaluate
and discuss new developments and challenges for the tourism
sector and their impact on jobs, human resources, development
and industrial relations. In particular, the Forum addressed the
strong poverty reduction potential of tourism and how good prac-
tices in this respect could be shared with other developing coun-
tries, especially within the framework of South-South develop-
ment cooperation.
THE HOTEL
GRANDE BRETAGNE HAS
ONCE AGAIN BEEN
INCLUDED IN THE
PRESTIGIOUS CONDÉ NAST
TRAVELER MAGAZINE
‘BEST HOTELS LIST’ AS
VOTED BY THEIR READERS.
The Hotel Grande Bretagne has once again been included in the
prestigious Condé Nast Traveler magazine 'Best Hotels List' as
voted by their readers.The well known publication of Condé Nast
Traveler has selected the most luxurious and historical hotel of
Athens as one of the best hotels, not only in Greece, but globally.
Ranked among the top 25 hotels in the Southern Europe region –
a region famous for its unique and refined hospitality – this dis-
in the five sessions compared to around 87 when the programme
was launched in 2009.
The Impressive visitor figures continued on Tuesday with a 41%
tinction is a great honor for the hotel.
Top in its league and the only hotel in Greece to be selected, the
“Grande Bretagne” is committed to creating exceptional, indige-
nous experiences for its guests. The 23rd Readers’ Choice Awards From the Greek Pavillion, The Deputy Minister of Culture an Tourism Mr.
include 1,060 winners, selected by 25,916 readers who answered G. Nikitiadis & the Manager of GNTO in London Ms Sofia Panagiotaki
the 2010 Readers’ Choice Survey, choosing the best cities, islands, increase in ministers and aides attending the fourth UNWTO Min-
hotels, and transportation in the world. The awards have now isters’ Summit at WTM, making it a record attendance for the
been published in the November 2010 issue of the famous mag- event.
azine. Overall, unaudited visitor figures for Tuesday 9 November were
Ever since it opened its doors to receive the first visitor in 1874, up 18% on the equivalent day in 2009 with almost 17,000 visitors
the Grande Bretagne has been a point of reference in the social,
political and economic life of Athens and, by extension, of the
whole of Greece. The Hotel Grande Bretagne offers the best loca-
tion in Athens with spectacular views to the Acropolis and sets a
significant example in the international hotel business, offering
pure luxury in service and living.
WTM 2010 EXPERIENCES
10% INCREASE IN VISITORS
World Travel Market 2010, the premier global event for the travel
industry, experienced an impressive 10% increase in visitors.
Almost 27,000 (26,908) visitors attended WTM 2010 over the four
attending WTM 2010 to meet and negotiate contracts with ex-
hibitors.
days (Monday November 8 – Thursday November 11) compared to Unaudited figures for Wednesday 10 November showed a 16% in-
24,402 visitors who attended WTM 2009, reveals unaudited figures crease in visitors with almost 13,000 travel industry delegates at-
of the event. tending.
The 10% increased was fuelled by a record number of visitors at-
tending the event under the My Invitations system on the first day
The revamped final day of WTM 2010 (Thursday 11 November) –
including the Talk Business with Lord Digby Jones session - saw
of WTM 2010 (Monday 8 November).
The first day at World Travel Market is invite-only, allowing ex-
unaudited visitor numbers increase by an impressive 34%.
Furthermore, overall participant figures increased by almost 5%
hibitors to invite the key contacts they want to conduct business (4.7%) compared to WTM 2009. WTM 2010 saw 47,719 travel in-
with over the four days of the event. Unaudited figures show a dustry professionals take part compared to 45,571 at WTM 2009.
22% increases in visitors with 6,700 senior industry buyers at- There were more than 5,000 exhibitors including 628 Main Stand
tending WTM 2010 on the first day. Holders, compared to 607 in 2009.
This increase in My Invitations visitors led to an amazing partici- World Travel Market Exhibition Director Simon Press said: “I am
pation in the expanded Meet The Meridian Club Buyers (Speed delighted with the attendance figures for WTM 2010. The impres-
Networking) session. Almost 250 senior industry buyers took part sive increase in My Invitations visitors participants in the Meet The
 [NEWS] | 9

Meridian Club Buyer (Speed Networking) session on the first day

supports the conversations I had with exhibitors and buyers that
cessful networking.
A trade visitor pass to ITB Berlin grants admission to all the lectures
VISITING DETAILS FOR
a high amount of business was conducted at WTM 2010
“The fact the number of year on year visitors increased every day
at the Business Travel Forum.
Any event planners who would like to explore Berlin’s hottest ven-
CHRISTMAS MAGIC CITY
of WTM – including the 34% increase in visitors on the final day - ues outside the exhibition grounds have an opportunity to do so on THESSALONIKI
is particularly impressive and is great news for exhibitors, allow- the Friday of the fair. MEET BERLIN, a group which oversees 65 event
ing them to conduct even more business across all four days of venues and various caterers, outfitters, artists, will be holding a
the event.” grand open day for the third time.
From 11 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. agencies and corporate planners have an
MICE DAY AT ITB BERLIN opportunity to personally get to know numerous event venues,
caterers, outfitters, artists, hotels and other service providers work-
2011 IN COOPERATION ing for the events industry. Participants can experience the pro-
gramme on a bus tour or find out about the many attractions for
WITH THE ASSOCIATION themselves. More details are available at www.meet-berlin.net/tour.
At Pavilions 14 and 15 and the outdoor areas of Tessaloniki Inter-
national Exhibition Centre.
OF GERMAN EVENT Entrance:
South Gate - YMCA Square
ORGANISERS HAS TIPS “TRAVELLING” PROMOTES North Gate - Merchandise Gate
Duration:
FOR EVENT PLANNERS GREEK TRAVEL AND 27 November 2010 to 2 January 2011
ITB Berlin 2011A badly organised event can not only cause lasting
damage to a company’s reputation but also result in huge and ulti- TOURISM IN GREECE AND Working Hours:
Monday - Friday 17:00 - 2200
mately unnecessary costs. This is why Gerhard Bleile, President of
the Association of German Event Organisers, advocates not leaving
ABROAD Saturday - Sunday, holidays and days when schools are closed:
10:00 - 22:00
quality and costs up to chance: “Combining traditional and innovative Admission:
thinking is a recipe for outstanding success.” Concrete ways to help
further this idea will be presented at MICE Day at ITB Berlin on 9
March 2011. In cooperation with the Association of German Event
Organisers, MICE Day at ITB Business Travel Days offers a concise
overview of trends and innovations in event planning. At the ITB
Business Travel Days from 9 to 11 March 2011, at lectures, work-
shops and panel discussions, experts and practitioners will present
the latest findings on business travel and events.
At the ITB Business Travel Days the MICE Day in particular will be
presenting event organisers with a compact range of advanced
training courses offering concrete approaches. The focus will be on In the month of November, Travelling took the opportunity to pro-
MICE guidelines which help to reduce in-house time and effort as mote the Greek travel and toourism industry through Travelling
well as external costs during procurement, without sacrificing the News, Hellenic Travelling, the only monthly publication with all the
quality of an event. Good briefings also contribute decisively to the domestic sea schedules as well as its portal www.travelling.gr
success of an event. MICE Day will warn of typical mistakes. with stands i the exhibitions World Travel Market in London and
A further presentation will examine optimum return on investment. Philoxenia in Thessaloniki
This lecture will explain the importance of service, teamwork and
customer motivation. Book author Benno van Aerssen will speak
about vicious circles in MICE planning and how to escape them with
intelligent ideas.
The popular topic of social media has found its way into the event 3 Euro per person
world and is a must on the MICE Day agenda. A workshop will dis- 2.5 Euro per person for group visits (4 or more persons)
cuss which changes are important and how organisers and speak- 15 Euro unlimited visit card (the cards is valid for one person on-
ers can use networks to their own ends. The panel discussion will ly and Identity Cards must be presented as well)
conclude with participants exploring trends in the meetings indus- For tickets and participation of groups, associations, etc. please
try and highlighting current developments. call (+30) 2310 291279.
In Hall 8.1 the well-established ITB Berlin Business Travel Lounge
will invite decision-makers and senior executives to talk about suc-

news.travelling.gr
10 | [NEWS]
“LEADER IN AVIATION
AWARDS 2010 -
DOHA AVIATION SUMMIT” -
“AIRPORT OF THE YEAR”
AWARD GOES TO ATHENS
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
On behalf of Athens International Airport, George Kalimassias,
Manager, Corporate Planning, received the award from the Chair-
man of the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority, His Excellency Abdul Aziz
Al Noaimi.
On October 30th in Doha, aviation leaders awarded Athens Interna-
tional Airport (AIA) with the “Airport of the Year 2010” distinction, in
recognition of the high quality of services offered to airport passen-
gers and visitors, combined with a strong and competitive business
model. AIA’s newest distinction was delivered during the “Leader in
Aviation Awards”, part of the three-day Doha Aviation Summit (Qatar,
October 30th – November 1st).
Athens International Airport was distinguished for its excellent op-
eration and quality of services, state of the art technology and inno-
vation, along with AIA’s entrepreneurship and business strategy.
Judges highlighted the success of AIA’s business model, the air-
port’s significant contribution to the national and local economy, and
its responsibility towards its stakeholders. Moreover, AIA’s innova-
tive incentive and marketing support scheme offered to its airline
partners, especially during difficult times for the industry, were high-
ly acknowledged.
During the three-day Doha summit, more than 200 representatives
from airports, airlines and state authorities, discussed the principal
challenges for the industry and examined strategies for future de-
velopment. It is also worth noting that, for Athens International Air-
port, the Middle East is the region enjoying the biggest growth in the
last 3 years (January – September 2010: +13.8 in flights, +10.9 in
passenger traffic).
EASYJET NEW FLEXIBLE
FARES FOR PASSENGERS
WHO TRAVEL FOR
BUSINESS PURPOSES
New flexible fares for passengers who travel for business pur-
poses. The new fares offer passengers unlimited flexibility to
change elements of their journey, until two hours before the
scheduled flight departure
Passengers using the new fare, can make any changes they wish,
in under four weeks - one week before and three weeks after the
initial reservation.
They may also benefit from a free service of Speedy Boarding, not
to incur additional costs and charges, one luggage will also be of
no charge.
The proposed flexible fares correspond perfectly to easyJet's
commitment to maintain its tariffs at low levels, they will be high-
ly competitive and much lower than those offered by "traditional
airlines.
Chief executive of easyJet, Carolyn McCall, said: “We see a grow-
ing preference for passengers who travel for business purposes
with easyJet, the reason is that easyJet has the best European
network, serving general airports and maintaining low fares.
EasyJets flexible tickets are specifically designed to meet the
needs of passengers who travel for business purposes making
easyJet even more attractive option for them.
The new flexible fares will initially be available only from profes-
sional booking channels such as Global Distribution Systems and
booking tools used by companies for business travel. Availability
to all passengers through easyJet.com will be possible in the fu-
ture.
Integrated marketing and promotional campaign will be held in
the first quarter of 2011.
TRAVELPORT ANNOUNCED
THE RECENT RELAUNCHING
OF ITS WEBSITE
“TRAVELPORT LEISURE”
Travelport announced the recent relaunching of its website “Travel-
port Leisure”, which is having great success, counting over 1200
registered professionals worldwide. The website was relaunched
last June and is now available in over 108 countries worldwide.
Among them are Greece and Cyprus, which has become available in
September.
The website Travelport Leisure is an upgraded version of the previ-
ous website Galileo Leisure, which was first launched in 2005. The
company decided to further invest in the services of Galileo Leisure,
in response to the continuous increase trend of the international
leisure traveler, which is expected to reach 700 billion by 2014.
The Travelport Leisure website contains multiple options in hotels,
accommodations, car rentals, as well as local information, all of
which are free for all travel agents, even if they are not subcribers to
the booking system GDS Travelport.
Leonidas Zotos, country manager of Travelport for Greece, explains,
“The new enhanced website Travelport Leisure does not only offer a
new look, but increases the sales dynamics of travel agents sales,
offering them new and useful content for leisure travel. Our part-
ners in the travel industry always showed their satisfaction for the
using Galileo Leisure, but asked us for even more options. We pos-
itively responded to their requests and we came up with the new
website which perfectly complements the basic booking platform
Travelport. Proof of this is the response we have from the market
following the launch.”
Gathering the entire information in Galileo Leisure website, which
contains 35.000 hotels from GTA, the Travelport Leisure website in
addition will offer the travel agents access to a wide range of content
from renown suppliers from the leisure travel industry.
In addition, the Travelport Leisure website continues to offer useful
information from GTA, such as interactive city maps, weather fore-
casts, hotel reviews, news, visa information and destination guides,
so as to help the travel agents job.
ABU DHABI INTERNATIONAL
AIRPORT RECORDS
16% INCREASE IN VISITORS
DURING F1 SEASON
Abu Dhabi Airports Company(ADAC) released today the total pas-
senger numbers arriving to Abu Dhabi the week prior to the Eti-
had Aiways Formula 1 Grand Prix. The published numbers indi-
cate a 16% increase in Abu Dhabi International Airport arrivals pri-
or to the F1 race, between 7th and 13th of November, compared to

that of last year's race, a clear indication of the international
awareness of the event and its success in attracting visitors to the
Emirate.
The increased flight frequencies and destinations served from Abu
Dhabi International Airport in 2010 has also played a significant
role in this growth.
This growth was also apparent at Al Bateen Executive Airport,
ADAC's dedicated airport for business aviation. Al Bateen record-
ed nearly 100 aircraft movements during the F1 race period, with
13th and 14th November being the peak days. This growth repre-
sents a 17% increase in aircraft movements when compared with
the same F1 race period in 2009. The executive airport welcomed
aircraft from all over the world carrying VIPs, Formula One driv-
ers and other prominent figures of the international community.
In this regard, James E. Bennett, CEO of Abu Dhabi Airports Com-
pany, stated: "ADAC had an exciting week during the Etihad Air-
ways Formula One Grand Prix, offering its award-winning servic-
es to all of the F1 guests at both Abu Dhabi International and Al
Bateen Executive Airports. We are glad to be a part of the Emi-
rate's success during this event ".
LUFTHANSA EXPANDING
FLIGHT SERVICES THIS
WINTER
Lufthansa expanding flight services this winter. Three new destina-
tions in the 2010/11 winter timetable — Fleet renewal with larger
aircraft and higher productivity will lead to an increase in seat ca-
pacity
This winter, Lufthansa is adding more destinations and frequencies
to its existing network. An average of 12,218 flights per week are
scheduled, compared with 11,803 flights (+3.5%) in the 2009/10 win-
ter period. From 31 October, when the new timetable goes into effect,
Lufthansa will offer flights to 197 destinations in 85 countries (pre-
vious year: 191 destinations in 78 countries). The three latest addi-
tions to the route network are Bogotá, Pointe Noire and Luxem-
bourg. “We are not only giving our customers access to an extend-
ed network to South America and Africa,” says Lufthansa German
Airlines Board member Karl Ulrich Garnadt. “From now on, we will
also be flying a number of seasonal routes, such as Munich–Mon-
treal or Dusseldorf–Venice, in the winter months, making those
cities all-year-round destinations for the first time.”
Available seat capacity in the forthcoming winter timetable will be
increased by 9.1 cent year-on-year. This increase is attributable to
Lufthansa’s ongoing fleet renewal programme, under which exist-
ing aircraft are gradually being replaced by larger and more fuel ef-
ficient aircraft. This winter, Lufthansa will also be operating four Air-
bus A380s at full capacity. Another factor is the expanded route net-
work with three new destinations and higher flight frequencies on
existing routes. “Most of the growth in capacity is due to the new
larger regional aircraft as well as to our new flagship, the A380. On
top of that, we are achieving even higher productivity as a result of
improved capacity utilisation,” says Karl Ulrich Garnadt. “The in-
creased capacity reflects the impact of the changed seat configura-
tion of our new product on European routes.” The 2010/11 winter
timetable comes into effect on Sunday 31 October 2010 and applies
until Saturday 26 March 2011.
New long-haul flights to Colombia and the Republic of the Congo
Lufthansa is extending its long-haul network with the addition of
several new destinations in growth markets in South America and
Africa. On 31 October, services to the Colombian capital Bogotá will
resume. Five flights per week, operated by an Airbus A340, are
scheduled between Frankfurt and Bogotá. Lufthansa served this
major city in the northwest of South America up until 2002. Once this
route is reinstated, Lufthansa will offer its customers a total of 62
flights weekly to four destinations in South America.
Lufthansa is also launching a new route to Africa. From 31 October,
flights from Frankfurt to Pointe Noire in the Republic of the Congo
will be operated five times a week by a PrivatAir Boeing 737-800,
with a stopover in Libraville in Gabon. Libreville will then be served
non-stop from Frankfurt. In the last three years alone, Lufthansa
has added five new African destinations to its route network.
Seasonal connections from Munich to Montreal and Washington will
be continued in the winter, thus making these cities all-year-round
destinations. The flight times in the summer timetable will be opti-
mised for the winter period.
Luxembourg joins Lufthansa route network
This winter, Lufthansa is also expanding its extensive network in
Europe with the introduction of flights from Munich to Luxembourg,
which will augment the service offered by its partner Luxair. The
route will be operated up to twice daily by a Lufthansa CityLine
CRJ700. In addition, Luxair will offer three direct flights per day from
Luxembourg to Munich. For the first time, Lufthansa will also oper-
ate its seasonal summer route from Dusseldorf to Venice and Nice
as well as from Hamburg to Nice in the winter. Flight frequencies
on numerous routes from Dusseldorf have also been increased. For
example, Lufthansa will for the first time offer a daily service on its
Dusseldorf– Miami route during the winter period.
For economic reasons, Lufthansa has recently withdrawn its serv-
ice from Hamburg to Innsbruck in Austria. From now on, this route
will be operated on a codeshare basis with Austrian Airlines.
The other four carriers in the Lufthansa Airline Group – Austrian Air-
lines, bmi, Brussels Airlines and SWISS – are also launching their
winter schedule on 31 October. Together, the five airlines will then
serve 258 destinations in 107 countries on four continents from their
hubs at Brussels, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, London Heathrow, Munich,
Vienna and Zurich, and also augment each other’s frequencies with
numerous codeshare flights.
[NEWS] | 11
“WORLD’S LEADING
AIRLINE” FOR SECOND
YEAR RUNNING
Etihad Airways, has been awarded the prestigious title of “World’s
Leading Airline” for a second consecutive year at the World Travel
Awards (WTA).
The top airline WTA, the ultimate recognition in the travel industry,
was presented to Peter Baumgartner, Etihad’s Chief Commercial
Officer, at gala event in London. The Abu Dhabi-based airline was
also named “World’s Leading First Class” airline for the third year
in a row.
James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said: “To win
the award for ‘World’s Leading Airline’ two years running is a phe-
nomenal and unprecedented achievement for an airline that is on-
ly seven years old.
“It shows that our service ethic is well embedded and that we have
the ability to consistently deliver what customers want. The avia-
tion industry is fiercely competitive and to win an accolade like this,
and be placed amongst the best in the world, is something we will
continue to strive for year on year.”
The WTA recognise the best airline, hospitality and tourism brands
in the world, with industry experts vetting nominations on the ba-
sis of their customer relations, creativity, quality of service, prod-
uct innovation and business acumen.
Etihad was the first Middle Eastern airline to win the “World’s Lead-
ing Airline” award in 2009 and was credited for the excellence of
its onboard product, luxurious airport lounges and strong service
ethic during a period of phenomenal growth.
Mr Hogan said: “The aviation industry continues to face stern chal-
lenges whether it is in security, the global recession, or natural dis-
asters like the ash cloud in Europe, but Etihad has shown that it is
equipped to manage through these difficulties and still deliver the
best product and service to its customers.”
The winners for the WTA are selected by more than 185,000 indus-
try professionals and consumers worldwide who cast their vote
online. During the voting session Etihad received considerable
praise for consistently being the best in the air and on the ground.
Etihad’s success in London caps a great year for the airline as it
had won six titles at the WTA ceremony for the Middle East in May,
including the coveted title as the region’s Leading Airline.
www.travelling.gr