Lyssandros Tsilides : Global enthusiasm for Greek plan to extend season

President of Travel & Tourist Agencies Hellenic Associations Federation (FEDΗΑΤΤΑ) Lyssandros Tsilides announces the Federation's absolute committment to promote all-year-round tourism in Greece through the dynamic "Dodeka" concept, in cooperation with all of the country’s forces towards this direction.
In an exclusive interview to TornosNews, Mr. Tsilides describes the "Dodeka" (Twelve) dynamic action plan that includes thematic and special interest activities and the promotion of less-known tourism destinations, aiming to enrich the tourism product and expand the season.
International toolbox
He also explains that "Dodeka " is to be used as a toolbox, not only by Greek tour operators and travel agents, but also by their international network and reveals that the action plan "has been communicated and has already received enthusiastic feedback by all tour operator and travel agencies associations abroad and their members."
Finally, he exclaims that this action plan will be promoted in all tourism exhibitions and roadshows worldwide so that its communication will be ongoing and consistent, but also for it to take effect as soon as possible as an extra measure for the promotion of Greece worldwide.
The full text of Mr. Tsilides' interview to TornosNews is as follows:
• How do you evaluate the year of 2015 in terms of Greece’s tourism sector performance?
According to the figures that we have so far, it looks that for a third consecutive year, the total arrivals to Greece have reached new record level.
We are expecting the official statistical reports so we can further analyze the various elements and impact to different destinations and sectors of our tourism industry.
Undoubtedly, the industry is growing and is resilient both to the domestic problems and the international geopolitical situation.
• What opportunities and pitfalls does 2016 present for our national tourism industry?
During 2016 Greece might be influenced by the European and International issues that have arisen after the Paris incidents and we are following very closely the concerns of the European tourist industry.
So far, Greece has benefited from the unrest in other popular Mediterranean destinations, but we need to work harder and use this short term opportunity to maintain growth. We need to be competitive and explore all opportunities to attract new target groups.
• After three consecutive years of growth, what prospects does the Greek tourism product have?
Tourism requires long term planning in order to continue growing. We need to continue building a very strong brand and offer a unique experience to our international guests. We need to increase the quality of our services in order to attract visitors of higher income and we definitely need to take specific actions to extend our seasonality and introduce the less visited and less popular destinations of our country.
• How can Greece prolong the tourist season? What measures or initiatives are required and what prerequisites have to be met for this long awaited objective to be realized?
One of the main objectives of Greek tourism is the expansion of the tourist season in Greece.
The Federation of Hellenic Associations of Travel & Tourist Agencies (FED HATTA) recently launched a dynamic concept to realize this objective: to establish all-year-round tourism in Greece with all of the country’s forces cooperating towards this direction.
We have already created the "Dodeka" (Twelve), a dynamic action plan that includes thematic and special interest activities and the promotion of less-known tourism destinations, which aims to enrich the tourism product and expand the season.
This is an innovative, sectoral initiative from which new tourism products will emerge for our country, which is something necessary in order to redefine Greece as a preferred destination for international tourists. The "Dodeka " action plan also marks the launch of FED HATTA’s initiatives and actions.
We aspire for the constantly enriched program of activities of "Dodeka " to be used as a toolbox, not only by Greek tour operators and travel agents, but also by their international network.
As it is known, travel agencies and tour operators, on an international level, are the producers and distributors of the tourism product and are principally engaged in composing individual tourist products as well as promoting, advertising and selling them.
Our action plan has been communicated and has already received enthusiastic feedback by all tour operator and travel agencies associations abroad and their members. "Dodeka " will outline the themes of upcoming familiarization trips of tourism and travel professionals.
Upon completion, the "Dodeka " action plan will be promoted by the Federation and its Members (Associations of travel agencies throughout Greece) and tourism professionals in all tourism exhibitions and roadshows worldwide so that its communication will be ongoing and consistent, but also for it to take effect as soon as possible as an extra measure for the promotion of Greece worldwide.
We invite you to see the presentation of the action plan here. Please note that the presentation is being updated regularly.
FEDHATTA site www.hatta.gr
26/03 23:16
26/03 16:03
Deputy Tourism Minister: Scheduled flights to Greece to rise by 15% in 2023 compared to 2019
26/03 14:12
Flight from Belfast inaugurates tourism season for Greek island of Corfu
26/03 13:20
Greek PM: We will do everything for railways to regain passengers' trust
25/03 23:03
Greek FM: Positive turn in relations with Turkey due to neighboring country's attitude change
25/03 15:53
Congratulatory messages from state leaders and embassies on Greek Independence Day
25/03 13:40
Greek Independence Day celebrated with parades and cultural events
25/03 10:58
Tourism commits to water action agenda at 2023 United Nations water conference
24/03 23:25
Digital upgrade to take some Greek tax services offline on March 30
23/03 22:50
IATA and AWS launch firsf Datathon to promote diversity in aviation
23/03 22:27
Greek battle ships dock at Piraeus port for public visits over Independence Day
23/03 22:18
23/03 19:55
Passenger traffic in Greek airports grows 53.3% in February compared to 2022
23/03 18:13
Fall in coronavirus infections and rise in flu cases in Greece on March 13-19
23/03 14:23
22/03 23:37
Priceless antiquities returned to the people of Greece at New York Consulate
22/03 22:42
22/03 21:46
Greek summer school organized in Peloponnnesian city of Kalamata in 2023
22/03 18:52
Downtown Athens traffic restrictions imposed for Greek Independence Day parades
22/03 17:31
ABNA-SE conference concluded with general assembly in Thessaloniki
21/03 23:17
UNWTO organizes tourism statistics workshop for Asia and Pacific in Nepal
21/03 23:00
Calilo Resort on Ios: A Greek hotel in the 11 most sustainable hotels in the world
21/03 22:21
HRADF inks Igoumenitsa Port share purchase deal with Grimaldi-led joint venture
21/03 16:15
19/03 14:10
UNWTO launches new Women in Tech startup competition across the Middle East
19/03 14:07
Greek president attends memorial march for Thessaloniki Jews killed in Holocaust
19/03 09:14
Greek Minister: Relaunching railway services key to restoring public's confidence
18/03 14:07
FM launches official campaign of Greek candidacy for UN Security Council
18/03 13:37
18/03 13:28
Greek Tourism Minister forecasts that 2023 will be a very strong year for sector
18/03 09:02
Greek Minister meets visiting Israeli minister of science and technology in Athens
17/03 23:10
Passenger traffic rises in Greek ports but cargo drops in Q3 2022
17/03 16:09
17/03 15:04
China and Greece join forces to create mutual learning model between cultures
17/03 12:14
Τhe new minimum wage set by Greek government at 780 euros as of April 1
16/03 21:37
Walk against discrimination 2023 to take place at Syntagma Square on March 21
16/03 19:30
Central Athens road traffic restored after rallies and transport strikes
16/03 19:12
Athens Half-Marathon to affect traffic in and around downtown Athens on Sunday
16/03 14:17
Greek state budget recorded primary surplus of 4.201 billion euros in Jan-Feb
16/03 14:12
FinMin: Greek banks able to absorb any turbulence from global markets
16/03 14:03
IATA and Afroport Mauritanie ink agreement on ground handling safety
16/03 13:07
15/03 13:59
Mandarin Oriental Costa Navarino opens this summer in Peloponnese of Greece
14/03 23:09
Greek mining enterprises planning to invest 300-400 million euros in 2023
14/03 20:41
Public transportation in Athens halted partially by 24-hour strike on Thursday
14/03 20:19
14/03 19:15
Nominations open for 2023 IATA Diversity and Inclusion Awards in aviation
14/03 19:02
Health Minister: Greece lifting Covid measures with some exceptions
14/03 18:52
UNWTO Best Tourism Villages ceremony focused on tourism for rural development
14/03 17:33
Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air cancel all flights in Greece on Thursday
14/03 13:06
7th Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum in Thessaloniki on April 25-26
14/03 12:11
Hellenic Train: Buses to transport passengers for free on certain routes from March 15
14/03 12:00
Thessaloniki Urban Transport employees annunce 24-hour strike on March 16
14/03 00:10
Hellenic College - Holy Cross full accreditation reaffirmed by NECHE
13/03 23:23
75th Anniversary of Dodecanese unification marked on March 12 in Astoria
13/03 22:33
Greek Transport Minister and railway unions meet on safe restart of train services
13/03 19:18
UK’s Prime Minister rules out return of Parthenon Marbles to Greece
13/03 16:49
Hellenic Republic President: Cyprus top national priority of Greek foreign policy
12/03 14:23
British Museum head on solving 200-year-old dispute with Elgin Marbles
12/03 14:20
Greek unions call 24-hour national strike on Thursday over Tempi train crash
12/03 14:05
Summer tourism season kicks off in Greek island of Rhodes earlier than ever
12/03 13:11
Athens metro stations closed as protest rally is held over Tempi train collision
11/03 21:05
11/03 19:05
UNWTO marks Best Tourism Villages ceremony in AlUla of Saudi Arabia
11/03 17:15
Huawei VP CEE & Nordic Europe Region: Greece is a valuable market
11/03 13:27
UNWTO report on methodologies and tools to measure greenhouse gas emissions
11/03 12:58
GWTO head: Greece among most promising emerging wine tourism destinations
11/03 10:13
New Cyprus President to visit the Greek capital Athens on March 12-14
11/03 09:48
Hellenic Statistical Authority: Greek trade deficit fell 21.9% in January
10/03 20:20
Tourism's potential centered at LDCV, UN conference on least developed countries
10/03 19:24
Panhellenic Exporters Association: High Greek exports growth to continue
10/03 18:33
Construction commences on 'Giannis Antetokounmpo' BB court in Ghana
10/03 11:12
SKY Express offers free flights for Athens-Thessaloniki students
09/03 23:09
UNWTO and Saudi Arabia join forces to promote education and training in tourism
09/03 21:46
09/03 20:20
UNWTO: New report to support climate action in the tourism industry
09/03 13:45
Natural gas prices for households in Athens dropped 23% during February
09/03 02:13
Feminist organizations rally in downtown Athens for International Women's Day
09/03 00:18
The UK’s National Theatre staging Homer’s epic Odyssey across England
08/03 23:29
08/03 22:37
International Air Transport Association releases 2022 airline safety performance
08/03 22:06
Railroad employees to continue strike action in Greece through Friday
08/03 20:47
Archbishop of Greece meets with visiting Pakistani Shia Muslim leader in Athens
08/03 20:36
SNF Institute for Infectious Disease Research founded at Rockefeller University
08/03 18:53
Europarliament's Civil Liberties Committee completes two-day visit to Athens
08/03 17:01
UN World Tourism Organization: Women take "centre stage"in sector development
08/03 00:46
EU officials to discuss railway safety and modernization in Athens on Wednesday
08/03 00:13
07/03 22:29
Greek PM asks shipping minister to increase security on ships ahead of Easter
07/03 21:25
Athens mass transport to operate on limited schedule during Wednesday's strike
07/03 20:39
Founder of company renovating Athens’ Archaeological Museum wins ‘Architecture Nobel ’
07/03 20:28
IATA: Disjointed EU PLACI roll out risks customs clearance delays
07/03 19:42
Three Athens Parthenon fragments returned to Greece at Vatican ceremony
07/03 16:20
Media: ‘Modern Elgin’ arrested trying to steal pieces of Athens Acropolis
07/03 14:16
06/03 22:47
Hellenic Cables and IPTO ink deal on Lavrio-Serifos and Serifos-Milos interconnection
06/03 22:06
Melina Mercouri exhibition organized at Elefsina, European Capital of Culture
06/03 20:38
Lamda Development signs deal with TEMES for joint development of hotels in Ellinikon
06/03 18:24
24 hour general strike to affect transport across Greece on Wednesday March 8
06/03 17:43
IATA slams disjointed EU PLACI roll out risks customs clearance delays
Greek PM: We will do everything for railways to regain passengers' trust
Tourism commits to water action agenda at 2023 United Nations water conference
Flight from Belfast inaugurates tourism season for Greek island of Corfu
Deputy Tourism Minister: Scheduled flights to Greece to rise by 15% in 2023 compared to 2019
Digital upgrade to take some Greek tax services offline on March 30
Greek FM: Positive turn in relations with Turkey due to neighboring country's attitude change
Congratulatory messages from state leaders and embassies on Greek Independence Day
Greek Independence Day celebrated with parades and cultural events
IATA and AWS launch firsf Datathon to promote diversity in aviation
Founder of company renovating Athens’ Archaeological Museum wins ‘Architecture Nobel ’
Original play "Women of Zalongo" premieres in California on March 3 (video)
Hollywood movie Dirty Angels begins filming in Greek city of Thessaloniki
Cypriot residents traveling abroad up by an annual 94.5% in November 2022
Greek piano prodigy gives viral concert at Rome INternational Airport
Bulgaria's economy minister discusses cooperations with TIF-HELEXPO chiefs
Greek Tourism Minister forecasts that 2023 will be a very strong year for sector
Fall in coronavirus infections and rise in flu cases in Greece on March 13-19
Public transportation in Athens halted partially by 24-hour strike on Thursday
Downtown Athens traffic restrictions imposed for Greek Independence Day parades
Greek battle ships dock at Piraeus port for public visits over Independence Day
Impressive results recorded by the Cyprus port of Limassol during 2022
First credits on market pass cards handed out in Greece by March 3
UK’s Prime Minister rules out return of Parthenon Marbles to Greece