Greece is among the Top 5 destinations of choice for Europeans hoping to take a holiday by March, according to the latest survey released this week by the European Travel Commission (ETC).

The ETC’s latest survey conducted in September: “Monitoring Sentiment for Domestic and Intra-European Travel – Wave 9”, reveals that a total of 6.8 percent of Europeans polled said they wanted to take a trip to Greece by the end of March.

Greece (7 percent) is ranked fourth as a top bucket list destination after Spain (9 percent), Italy (9 percent), and France (8 percent).

Completing the Top 10 are Germany, Croatia, Portugal, Turkey, Austria, and the UK.

Poland, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, and Italy are the main European markets that will generate travel flows through to March, the report found. In these countries, more than 68 percent of respondents said they intended to make at least one trip by that time.

More specifically, two in three Europeans plan to travel in the next six months thanks in large part to the confidence restored over the summer revealing a positive tourism outlook for the coming months.

The report’s analysts also found that for the first time since October 2020, Europeans’ travel plans are evenly spread over the next six months with 26 percent choosing to travel in October and November, 28 percent between December 2021 and January 2022, and 25 percent in February-March 2022.

According to ETC, the findings indicate that Europeans are no longer in a “waiting mode” and feel more confident to embark on “spontaneous” trips.

Preference for domestic trips dropped by 18 percent over the past 12 months with Mediterranean destinations ranking highest on travelers’ destination wish lists. Potential travelers are interested in city breaks (18 percent) up by 43 percent since the summer and beach vacations.

The report also found increased popularity in shorter trips of up to three nights (30 percent of city break travelers). At the same time, the percentage of travelers intending to spend up to 500 euros on their trip grew by 20 percent.

To read this article in full, please visit: news.gtp.gr

Greece emerged as the second-best (Silver) tourist destination in Europe after Italy, during the 25th edition of the annual American Readers’ Choice Awards (RCA 2021).

The RCA award is organised by Worth Publications and the bi-monthly travel magazine “Recommend”.

Greece shared second place with Ireland.

The poll was conducted online between July 8 and August 31.

More than 135,000 readers of the magazine made their choices in various categories, such as best destination, hotels, and resorts, travel agents, cruise companies, car rental companies, airlines companies, etc.

The Readers’ Choice Awards are handed out each year to countries and travel/tourism agencies and companies around the world that have established themselves in terms of excellence while attracting the strong interest of the global tourism industry.

Originally published on: greekcitytimes.com

CNN Travel has included Greece’s Nafplio on its list of Europe’s most beautiful towns.

The online magazine’s list includes some of the most attractive small towns across Europe, from humble fishing towns to hilltop medieval power bases.

A town in the area of Argolis in eastern Peloponnese, Nafplio was selected for its history, castles and impressive old town.

“Gorgeous Nafplio straddles the Aegean Sea in the Peloponnese, with its Venetian-built castle thrusting into the water (there are three castles to visit there) and a pretty Old Town spooling out behind the old walls,” the article says.

CNN Travel also refers to the town’s long history: Nafplio was the first capital of modern Greece. Furthermore, it suggests that travelers visit the archaeological museum which contains items dating back to the Mycenean age.

Other European towns included on CNN Travel’s list are Giethoorn, Netherlands; Guimarães, Portugal; Roscoff, France; Anghiari, Italy; Mostar, Bosnia and Herzigovina; Mazara del Vallo, Sicily; Clovelly, UK; Dinkelsbühl, Germany; Korčula, Croatia; Kenmare, Ireland; Piran, Slovenia; Reine, Norway; Regencos, Spain and Tarnów, Poland.

Originally published on: news.gtp.gr

Athens has joined major metropolitan cities like Paris, New York, and London, to come third in the list of most beautiful night-time cities around the world as ranked by Instagram, reports Daily Travel News.

According to the report, 'when looking at the most popular night-time cities across the globe, it’s the city of love that emerges as favorite amongst users of the social media platform, with over 1,000,000 hashtags for pictures of Paris by night. Following Paris is London, followed by Athens, Rome, and Warsaw.'

European cities dominated the list with only a few countries making it from outside the old continent, such as Dubai, United Arab Emirates with 71,500 hashtags, New York City, USA with 50,000 hashtags, and Tokyo, Japan with 42,700 hashtags.

The Greek capital of Athens ranked third with 182,000 hashtags.

To read this article in full, please visit: greekcitytimes.com

Main image: trikaliotis_giorgos

It’s that time of the year: plan-making season. The time for resolutions and fantasizing about things to come. For travel sites, like last year, looking ahead at where we might be packing our bags to is shadowed by the uncertainty of where the pandemic is headed. But while staycations and virtual tours have been trending on Google for the last two years, the latest tendency seems to be… optimism. Like every other year pre-covid-19, the time has come for the annual lists of “best places to travel” in 2022.'

Unsurprisingly, Greece, renowned as one of the few countries that managed to keep tourism alive during the pandemic, has a place on most lists.

So it does on Condé Nast Traveller’s list, which they introduced as being perhaps their most important one ever. Among the 22 destinations, a carefully curated selection of places around the world that they consider to be “coming into their own in 2022,” we find the island of Samos.

According to the article, the North Aegean island, which is listed as one of the best places in the world to travel with family, is “quietly making itself known as the finest Greek island many people have never heard of,” boasting the perfect combination of a lively main town (Vathy) and quiet villages. And why is it a great choice in 2022? Sustainability, a new priority amongst many travelers, is one reason. Samos is to be considered a sustainable choice, they emphasize, as it is unhurt by over-tourism, and food served is made with seasonal, local produce. The new Casa Cook hotel, set to open in May, is another reason. But more than anything, people should visit Samos for its authenticity:

“Samos’s beaches are its real siren song, though – from the small but heavenly slice of shingle at the hamlet of Posidonio, to the spectacularly dramatic bluffs and waterfalls at Potami, which are enrobed with a liquid amber glow at sunset. Further inland you’ll find the twin peaks of Ampelos and Kerkis towering above ambrosial pine forest and on their slopes blissfully unshowy mountain towns – such as Chora, Pagondas, and Mitilini – which have remained deliciously unchanged over the years,” part of the motivation reads.

Other places highlighted by foreign media for this year have been, among others, Crete, by Travel+Leisure, and a Glyfada resort, by CNN.

Robert De Niro will soon be in Greece, as a major motion picture featuring the Hollywood star will be shot in the northern Greek region of Drama, cementing the country as an international filming destination for cinema and television.

The action film, which is called “After Exile,” tells the story of a fraught relationship between a father and his son, who has just been released from prison, as they try to steer a relative away from a life of crime. De Niro will play the father, while actor Shia LaBeouf will play his son.

It is unclear whether the entire film will be shot in Greece or only a few scenes, but the filming in Greece is set to begin in Spring, likely at the end of March or early April.

Robert De Niro film “After Exile” to be shot in Greece

Local businesses and hotels in Drama, which is located in Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, are expecting around 300 people, including cast and crew, to descend on the region in Spring for filming.

This is not the only movie to be filmed in Greece recently. Hollywood film “The Expendables 4” was filmed in Thessaloniki in November. A set has been constructed on the east side of the city where the cast and crew filmed their scenes over the course of the two weeks.

The city hosted several of Hollywood’s brightest stars, with Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren, Megan Fox, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, Tony Jaa, and Andy Garcia all participating in the Thessaloniki filming. Franchise creator Sylvester Stallone also participated in the shoot, although it was the last time he worked on the series.

De Niro has also personally invested in Greece, with a Nobu Hotel that will open on the island of Santorini this Spring.

Nobu is a rising name in terms of luxury hotels, but it is already well known in the dining world as an international chain of high-end sushi restaurants.

The business Nobu Hospitality was born out of a collaboration between the restaurant’s head chef, Nobu Matsuhisa, Actor De Niro, and businessman Meir Teper.

While Nobu began with luxury restaurants in the US, the company soon expanded, opening up luxury restaurants across the world in cities like Mexico City, Beijing, and Istanbul.

After success in the restaurant business, the business expanded into hotels in 2013. Their latest project, in Santorini, Greece, will be the 26th Nobu Hotel in the world, and the tenth in Europe.

Located in the village of Imerovigli, which provides some of the most beautiful views of the entire island, the Nobu Hotel will also feature a signature Nobu Restaurant, luxury spa, and fitness center. 
 
Originally published on: greekreporter.com

Melbourne Museum’s new exhibition ‘Open Horizons: Ancient Greek Journeys’ will be opening on Saturday, April 23.

Melburnians will be able to dive into the trade, spirituality, art, ideas, and culture of ancient Greece in an Australian-first exhibition that brings precious artifacts from Greece exclusively to the Melbourne Museum.

Melbourne famously has the third largest Greek population of any city in the world after Athens and Thessaloniki, and Open Horizons: Ancient Greek Journeys is set to set to engage Melbourne’s Greek community, in addition to the wider Victorian population, in just how crucial ancient Greece has been to humanity’s development.

Melbourne Museum and Greece’s National Archaeological Museum have collaborated on the exhibition, which will take attendees on a journey through the golden age of Greek politics and philosophy, through to the present day. It offers a telling reminder that Greece continues to influence culture, politics, and sport on a wide scale, despite the nation’s population of approximately 10 million people, despite the nation’s deeply troubled economy and position at the forefront of Europe’s struggle with the ongoing migrant and refugee crisis.

Open Horizons will showcase 44 treasures from the Early Bronze age through to the Roman period. Highlights include a 2,500-year-old marble sphinx depicting a female head with the body of a winged lion and a collection of artifacts depicting Heracles, the greatest of all Greek heroes.

“We are excited to be collaborating with the National Archaeological Museum to bring some of the most remarkable artifacts direct from Athens for audiences in Melbourne to enjoy,” Museums Victoria CEO Lynley Crosswell said. 

To read this article in full, please visit: greekcitytimes.com

Main image: @melbournemuseum

Greek beaches have a reputation that they are second to none and, once again, the international media put them high on the list of the best beaches in Europe. Conde Nast Traveler distinguished three Greek beaches and invites travelers from all over the world to swim, at least once, in their crystal-clear azure waters.


Porto Katsiki Beach, Lefkada. Credit: @anna.vvagner

Lefkada’s Porto Katsiki beach is the first of three Greek entries on the list. As the article points out, it is a postcard-perfect beach on the south coast of the island, famous for its intense turquoise waters and sweeping views of the Ionian islands.

The second Greek beach on the list is Kleftiko, the most popular beach on Milos island. It's only accessible by boat or on foot. through a hiking path, but it's definitely worth visiting to marvel at its dramatic coastline. Not to mention its iconic volcanic rock formations, ideal for cliff-jumping. 


Kleftiko Beach, Milos. Credit: @thetantraveler.

Last but not least, the third entry is Seitan Limania in Chania, Crete. Imposingly located on a steep cliff, it's the perfect beach for adventure lovers since you have to walk through rugged dirt roads to get there (or simply take the boat). The reward is a white-pebbled beach with glittering blue waters!


Seitan Limania, Chania, Crete. Credit: @soulrepresentations

Main image: @lefkadaslowguide