According to a survey released by GBR Consulting, occupancy rates for hotels in Greece are expected to rise at least 2 percent and 70 percent of Greek hoteliers estimate that room rates will improve by 2 percent.

Resort proprietors are expressing even greater optimism with 71 percent estimating occupancy levels will increase by more than two percent and 78 percent foreseeing price improvement of two percent and more.

According to the study, the positive momentum in terms of revenue will continue into 2018. Athens recorded improved figures compared to Rome, which marked a 0.6 percent rise over the year but behind Madrid, which saw an 18.4 percent increase in 2017.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

A new initiative has been developed by the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, which promotes Greek culture and heritage in a digital E-learning platform. YouGoCulture creates images that allows us to travel to Greece from across the world, all through its online platform.

YouGoCulture is a free access, public and nonprofit platform, which captures the charm of unique destinations in the Peloponnese and in Attica. This new digital platform is committed to highlighting the character of cultural heritage and modern lifestyles all over the country. So far, their work includes 9 destinations, dozens of videos and interviews, thousands of photos and panoramas, and much more.

"The site is designed for international visitors to Greece and is entirely in English. It has been operational for almost a year, currently offering nine digital destinations: Mystras, Lavrio-Sounio, Elefsina, Marathon, Mycenae, Ancient Olympia, Messene, Epidaurus and Athens. Five more are set to be added in the near future (Limnos, Delos, Knossos and Delphi), while another 16 are in the pipeline."*

YouGoCulture, supported by Act4Greece and the National Bank of Greece, is seeking to raise €65,000 to produce more original audiovisual material to promote Greece's culture and heritage to international audiences. So far, over €41,000 euros have been raised.

For more information on how to donate, please visit: Act4Greece

Please click HERE to visit YouGoCulture's website.

*Source: Ekathimerini

In a village 200 kilometers west of Athens lies Galaxidi, a place of only about 1,700 inhabitants. Every year on Clean Monday, carnival celebrations ensue and residents and visitors "have a right to lose their civility."

They have what's known as a "flour war" — participants pelt each other with bags of dyed flour along the coastal road lining Galaxidi's old harbor.

"It's an explosion of color that takes place every Clean Monday, an Orthodox Christian holiday marking the start of Lent and the end of the carnival season which holds onto many of the country's pre-Christian traditions."

To read this article in full, please visit: NY Daily News

Held at the Athens Concert Hall (Megaron Mousikis), Athens had the pleasure of launching the first European Cultural Heritage celebration with the event 'Rebetiko Meets Flamenco and Fados." The event was organized by the Greek Culture Ministry and marked the official start of festivities of the European Year of Cultural Heritage.

2018 will be the year to encourage Europeans to discover and engage with their history, identity, and traditions through a series of events across the continent. It is an initiative of the European Commission with major themes this year in research and innovation and efforts to make cultural heritage more accessible to people across Europe.

The Athens concert showcased three urban popular traditions, which were born and developed in the ports of the Mediterranean. One in particular was the Greek rebetiko genre, which was listed on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity list in December 2017. What is Rebetiko? Click HERE to learn more!

 

Source: Greek Travel Pages

Tesla, the US company run by Elon Musk, that specializes in electric cars, energy storage, and solar panel manufacturing, have recently established Tesla Greece. Tesla will initially be operating from the National Center for Scientific Research "Demokritos," which is the biggest multidisciplinary research center in Greece. In the next few months, they are looking to recruit about 50 dedicated Research & Development staff.

Greece’s Research and Innovation Deputy Minister Costas Fotakis was instrumental in convincing the firm to open up a Greek branch.

The Athens operation will be Tesla’s fourth R&D hub in Europe. The company already has two hubs in the Netherlands and one in Germany.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

Bloode, the first online blood donation community in Greece, was launched in 2014 by Natalia Krichsali, Alexander Sotiropoulos and Panagiotis Sfikas, then fellows at the Athens University of Economics and Business. So far, they have had 3 years of success, especially in 2017. 

 

In 2017, Bloode managed to collect 4,500 volunteer blood donors, fulfill 191 requests for blood, and organize 55 blood donations. And their most important success; they donated more than 1,025 liters of blood for people in need.

Bloode grew to two main groups of 26 new volunteers who are now on staff. In order to meet the efficiency and growing needs to reach their goal, they decided to strengthen its management team by creating a new Board of Directors with President Natalia Krizali, a founding member of the organization, and members of the Business Development Director (ReGerenation), Giorgos Nikolettakis (CEO, 100 Mentors) and Angeliki Papadopoulou (Corporate Affairs Officer, Nestlé Hellas). Alexandros Sotiropoulos, also founding member of the Organization, has also now assumed the duties of General Manager and Secretary General of the BoD.

And finally, they developed partnerships with 10 new companies and 3 organizations to begin blood donation programs, which have also boosted their volunteer activity.

Any company that wants to set up a blood donation program and a blood bank for its employees and to those in need, can contact Bloode to help both organize events and inform those who would like to participate. The same applies to any other organization or group that would like to help their community.

Behind Bloode's effort is the community of blood donors, the volunteers of their team and their sponsors. Bloode is especially grateful for the cooperation with the Bodossakis Foundation and the Onassis Foundation, who helped in their effort to donate more blood.

With a new structure, mood and vision Bloode hopes to save even more lives in 2018!

For more information, please visit: Bloode

In January 2018, Greece saw a 22.4% increase in international arrivals according to the Greek Tourism Confederation's (SETE) intelligence INSETE.

According to INSETE’s latest report, the upward trend in Greek tourism is continuing into 2018 with pre-bookings paving the way for an estimated 5 percent increase in the number of visitors and revenue.

The country’s major airports reported a 17 percent rise in the number of international arrivals in January compared to the same month last year: 22.4 percent at Athens International Airport and 4.2 percent at regional airports. Specifically, the German arrivals are dominating the market, which rose by 40% in January.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

The Faliro Delta is moving onto the next phase of the revamp project after the Attica Region council said it would be allocating 90 million euros for the project.

The second phase of the project will only focus on the landscaping needs while the sports facilities, port upgrades, and cultural/commercial areas will be the focus during the third phase of the project. The construction will continue to 2021 when the park is set to open to the public.

The project was designed by Italian architect and engineer Renzo Piano and funded by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

Coinciding with a decade of museum operations, the excavation site at the Acropolis Museum is set to open to the public in the summer of 2019. The Museum Director, Dimitris Pantermalis, announced the opening recently to the Central Archaeological Council. 

The excavation site is located on the south side of the Acropolis, below the museum, and will be showcased through special lighting effects, informative signage, and digital applications. The site will also be accessible to anyone with disabilities, and admission is likely to be free due to the increase in ticket cost.

Visitors will have the chance to see ruins of an Ancient Athenian neighborhood along an ancient road, as well as homes, bathhouses, and workshops from 5th century BC.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

Just recently, African dust coming from the Sahara covered much of southern Greece and Crete. With plenty of pictures to prove it, the environment looked more like it belonged on planet Mars with the entire city covered by a thick orange cloud of dust.

The Athens Observatory stated that it was one of the largest ever transfer of Sahara desert sand to Greece. 

In fact, the orange cloud of dust wasn't just seen in Athens, it was seen around the country. Dust storms are a regular occurrence in Greece, particularly around this time in the spring. Sand and dust storms are a natural meteorological phenomenon, although the Mediterranean region is seeing more of them thanks to global warming, land conversions, and agricultural practices that lead to desertification and drought.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

 

Photo Credit: Greek Reporter