March 2004

August 2004 is not the end but only the beginning
As this issue goes to press, the campaign for the March 7 elections is in full swing. Political parties are busy planning strategy and candidates are splitting their time between campaigning on the road and media appearances in support of their respective parties and, of course, their own bids for election. Turn on the television any given evening and you will likely tune in to one, or more, current affairs shows with roundtables on the elections and lots of colorful charts about which party is ahead. The two majority parties, the ruling Panhellenic Socialist Movement and the opposition New Democracy, are engaged in what most analysts say will be the tightest election since the early 1990s.
Regardless of what each of these two parties claims, or hopes, the outcome of the March 7 election is anything but certain. What is certain, however, whichever party wins the elections and the mandate to form a government it will face the same tasks. And the most pressing of these is the preparations for the Olympic Games and the Paralympics to be held in Athens in August and September.
Officials from Athens 2004, the organizing committee for these Olympic Games, have publicly assured Greeks and their guests that everything will be ready. The government has too and the main opposition party has also made the same commitment. It seems that everyone agrees, at least, on the importance of the Olympic Games to Greece and its future ? a future whose economy will continue to depend, to a large degree, on tourism.
This is why it has been disappointing to observe two things, especially during these elections. First, there has been very little discussion about tourism and how we envisage its future. It is sad that such a vital sector of the economy is never discussed in the context of economic policy, or even policies relating to the environment, or agriculture, or employment, or development. On the one hand, the Olympic Games are being eagerly anticipated as an event that will jump-start the Greek tourism industry and, with hope, create the momentum that will lead to a tourism boom like that of the Sixties. But on the other, there has been little public discussion or apparent planning for a boom.
This leads to the second disappointment. It has become especially apparent in the last year that any planning in the broader tourism sector has been geared towards one specific event: the 2004 Olympic Games. Upgrades and improvements in infrastructure and services have focused almost exclusively on those needs that stem from the hosting of the Olympic Games. There has been virtually no talk of the day after and little forward planning so that plans made to serve Olympic organizational or logistical needs can be easily adapted to serve post-Olympic needs. In these last few months, it is worth bearing in mind that the Olympic Games are not an end, but rather the means for achieving an end. For the tourism industry, August 2004 is not the end of the race but only it's beginning.

Hellenic Travelling

Ionian Isles make a plan at international fairs
ΕΤΙΝ, the Ionian Islands Tourism Association, hit the ground running in 2004, with participations in four international trade shows in January alone. ΕΤΙΝ is registered to participate in a total of 20 travel expos this year aimed at promoting regional tourism and highlighting the special characteristics and amenities of the Ionian Islands as a holiday destination.
The ΕΤΙΝ stands were located inside the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ) pavilion at each travel fair. ΕΤΙΝ staff also held meetings with representatives of local media and tour operators at each event to whom they presented brochures and CDs with information about the Ionian Islands.
In January, ΕΤΙΝ organized booths at travel fairs in Utrecht, Vienna, Helsinki, and Bratislava. Association officials said there had been over 150,000 visitors to the Utrecht fair where the Ionian isles' stand was visited by the Greek ambassador to the Netherlands, Ι. Kaklikis; the head of the Hellenic Association of Tourism and Travel Agents (ΗΑΤΤΑ), Υ. Evangelou; and other Greek dignitaries from the travel industry.
The Vienna show drew more than 200,000 visitors. Greek representatives included the newly appointed ΕΟΤ chief, Nikos Dimadis, as well as representatives of regional authorities in the Ionian. The Greek contingent was larger than the previous year, a fact highlighted at a "Greek Night" organized for the media and Austrian travel agents at a hotel during the trade show. ΕΤΙΝ also organized a separate working lunch tour operators aimed at promoting the Ionian Islands as a single destination.
The island of Lefkada attracted considerable attention at the Vienna fair thanks to its troupe of folk dancers who performed at the Ionian Islands' stand inside the Greek pavilion as well as on the Expo's main stage.
ΕΤΙΝ was particularly pleased that the Ionian Islands were featured as a "recommended destination" in the Austrian travel Expo's official catalog.
Attendance was also high at the Bratislava travel fair as well as at the Matka show held at Helsinki. In addition to the Ionian Islands, Crete, Halkidiki, and Rhodes had the main stalls inside the rectangular Greek pavilion sponsored by ΕΟΤ. Among the fair's highlights was a performance of Greek folk dances by a Finnish troupe.
Preliminary feedback from the Helsinki expo shows high demand among Finnish holidaymakers, especially for destinations on the islands of Corfu and Lefkada. Both islands have been included in packages organized by Finland's largest tour operators, Finnmatkat (Corfu) and Aurinkomatkat (Lefkada).
In February, ΕΤΙΝ maintained the Ionian's high profile, participating in trade shows in Madrid, Prague, Milan, and Munich. But early bookings for 2004 from these countries are down by between 20 and 30 percent over last year, although this decrease is not as sharp as early bookings for Turkey (-62%) and Spain (-25%) in this market.

ΕΤΑ posts pre-tax profits
Hellenic Tourism Properties (ΕΤΑ), the real estate arm of the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ), has posted pre-tax profits totaling 31,896,822 euros for 2003 on total turnover of 126,061,000 euros. The statement includes earnings and income from the Mount Parnes Casino, in which ΕΤΑ holds a 51 percent stake.
Established under Public Law 2636/1998, the company was renamed ΕΤΑ under Public Law 2837/2000. Its mandate includes the management, administration, and operation of all ΕΟΤ assets. ΕΤΑ has a single shareholder: the Greek state, represented by the ministers of finance and development. In 2001, it took charge of the former Athens airport at Hellenikon, including surrounding property covering 170 stremmas (a stremma is equal to one-quarter acre), in order to develop a convention center at the site. It was subsequently decided to list ΕΤΑ on the Athens bourse, and the company applied to the Athens Stock Exchange on December 23, 2003.
ΕΤΑ's portfolio includes 364 properties which the company will manage according to a strategic development plan published under Public Law 3105/20003. Of its holdings, 241 properties have been assessed as "exploitable" while 153 deemed unsuitable for development (including properties comprising archaeological sites or environmentally-protected areas) will revert to state ownership.
According to ΕΤΑ's strategic plan, the company will pursue various options for developing or exploiting its holdings, including sale to private investors, leasing to private investors, and joint ventures with private investors.

Hoteliers meet with ATHOC security officials
The board of the Attica Hoteliers Union (ΕΧΑ) met with officials from the Athens 2004 Organizing Committee's security department to discuss preparations for the Olympic Games to be held in Athens this August.
In a statement released after the meeting, ΕΧΑ said it had been briefed on security plans for Olympic facilities, which include hotels which will host members of the Olympic Family.
Security measures will be implemented according to threat factors according to which guests have been classified. The ATHOC officials appealed to hoteliers to help them brief hotels on security measures and coordination during the Olympic Games.
All hotels have been ask to designate a security coordinator to liaise with ATHOC.
ΕΧΑ said it had emphasized the importance of a successful Games to greater Athens and agreed to regular meetings with ATHOC security officials.
Meantime, an ΕΧΑ delegation also met with the Public Order Minister to discuss problems stemming from the location of drug rehabilitation centers located in central Athens. The hoteliers called on the ministry should take the political decision to relocate these centers to areas that can be more effectively controlled and policed.

Amphitrion, Prisma discuss cooperation
Prisma Travel has joined the Amphitrion Group family of companies as from February 11, Amphitrion said in a statement.
It said that the company's inclusion in the group had been formalized through the creation of a subsidiary known as Amphitrion Prisma Travel. The subsidiary's aim would be to develop high-quality services for corporate clients.
Amphitrion Prisma Travel will be housed at the Amphitrion offices at 14 Fillelinon Street at Syntagma. Its staff of 18 will be under general manager Memos Patrikios.
Prisma Travel was established by Patrikios in 1983 and specialized in high-quality services and tailor-made travel.
The Amphitrion Group was established in 1974 and has offices in Athens, Piraeus, Athens International Airport, Myconos, Santorini, Halkida, Iraklio, and Rhodes as well as in Washington, D.C., Toronto, and Tokyo. It represents Carnival Cruises, Silversea Cruises, Malaysia Airlines, Airzena-Georgian Airlines, Luxair, Air Canada, US Airways, and Italiatour. It also manages a fleet of 32 luxury tour buses and two yachts.

Alitalia joins Sabre’s DCA program
The Sabre Travel Network, a company of Sabre Holdings, has announced that the Italian carrier Alitalia will participate in its Direct Connect Availability (DCA) Three-Year Option program. Alitalia has thus committed to participate in the highest level of the DCA network. It is the second airline, after British Airways, to join the DCA Three-Year Option.
"This program should be considered for Europe as one of the most constructive and innovative incentives in recent years for someone to participate in the GDS sector," said Vttorino Capobianco, vice president of Alitalia. "The Sabre Travel Network has understood the challenges facing the airlines regarding distribution costs and has taken action to deal with this issues but also to secure its position as a leader in the travel trade worldwide."
Airlines participating in the DCA Three-Year Option provide users with information such as published fares in return for reduced reservations commissions by Sabre.

SETE concerned about losing Olympic opportunity
The Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE) has expressed its concern that the opportunities for a tourism rebound from hosting the 2004 Olympic Games may be squandered because of a lack of planning and focused handling of the tourism sector's problems.
In a statement issued in early February, SETE said there was no indication at the start of this critical year that the industry's hopes for a recovery, after three years of stagnation and recession, would be realized.
It said the main reason for this pessimistic view was the lack of planning, and the piecemeal, often contradictory, handling of the industry's structural problems that had made the Greek tourism product less competitive.
SETE also called on politicians vying for election this March to put forth specific proposals on tourism and commit to specific measures that would help resolve deep-rooted problems in this vital industry that employs tens of thousands of people.

Albanian Airlines issues statement on UK operation
In response to public queries about Britain's refusal to grant the airline permission to fly to the U.Κ., Albanian Airlines has released a statement to the airline by Huw Hopkins, the British transport ministry's assistant director for international aviation negotiations.
The statement notes that according to Hopkins, "the reason we have not given permission to Albanian Airlines to commence services between Tirana and the United Kingdom is because of security and immigration control problems at Tirana. It is not because we have concerns about the safety of Albanian Airlines and hope that this clarifies matters."

Amadeus posts fourth quarter results for 2003
Fourth quarter results for 2003 posted by Amadeus, the leading global distribution system, confirm the company's solid performance that enabled it to beat expectations in adverse conditions.
"In a year with the highest annual drop in international travel ever registered by the World Tourism Organization since its foundation in 1950, Amadeus ended 2003 with a strong fourth quarter performance, and concluded the year slightly above our forecasts, despite the challenging environment for GDSs and tough conditions in the travel industry overall," said Amadeus President and CEO Jose Antonio Tazon. "With annual revenue up by 3.9 per cent to 1,929.0 million euros, full year net income rose by 8.9 percent to 160.1 million euros, even though comparable year-on-year reservations processed contracted by 2.6 percent to 385.5m, slightly more than predicted. Reservations revenue stayed level over the year while other revenue, including ΙΤ Services and Ε-Commerce rose by 19.3 percent."
Tazon added that these results "reflect clearly the success of our geographical expansion strategy, which allows us to weather travel downturns more easily, and our gradual product diversification which continues to open new revenue sources."
Based on the company's performance in 2003 and market trends, company analysts' forecasts call for net income to reach 165m-175m euros, while total reservations growth is expected to increase some 3-4 percent year on year. Revenue forecast remains as per our November 2003 guidance, at flat to 5 percent growth.

Germanwings offers nine flights weekly linking Greece, Germany
Germanwings, a new no-frills airline based in Cologne/Bonn, has announced its summer timetable, effective March 28. Germanwings flights will depart Athens for Cologne on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays at 11:20 hours and Thessaloniki on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays at 14:30 hours.
Ticket prices start at 19 euros per route and can be booked from the Germanwings call center in Athens at 210 9696416 or online.
In January 2004, Germanwings reached an average seat load factor of more than 80 percent on all the airline's 23 European destinations. From and to Greece and Turkey, the airline has even reached a seat load factor of 90 percent. "It seems that especially between Greece and Germany, as well as between Turkey and Germany the demand of tickets at reasonable prices are extremely high due to ethnic traffic in the first place," Dr. Joachim Klein, Managing Director of Germanwings, explained.
With these results Germanwings further strengthened their position as leading no-frills airline in Germany. Being the largest airline at Cologne/Bonn International Airport Germanwings has exclusive use of the C-Area of the airport. "The airline will continue to grow," Dr. Klein stated. "During the summer timetable, we will increase the number of destinations from 23 today to 30," he added.
With its new summer timetable, Germanwings will introduce extensive additional capacity between Greece and Germany. The new summer timetable offers four weekly connections between Athens and Cologne, five weekly connections between Thessaloniki and Cologne as well as three weekly connections from the northern Greek metropolis to Stuttgart. "The demand of flights from and to Northern Greece increases especially during the summer months," said Dr Klein. "So Germanwings will offer 8 weekly flights from the northern Greek metropolis to Germany."
Since the beginning of the year the new low cost airline has recognized an enormous demand for tickets to the major sport events this year: the soccer championship in Portugal and the Olympic Games in Athens. "Therefore we have decided to further increase routes between Greece and Germany during the months of July and August 2004," Dr Klein explained. During these two months Germanwings will operate daily services between Athens and Cologne as well as daily services between Thessaloniki and Cologne. Together with three weekly flights from Thessaloniki to Stuttgart, the Cologne based airline will offer 17 weekly flights between Greece and Germany during July and August 2004. The capacity compared to the actual winter timetable will then be nearly doubled.

Superfast “Most Popular” ships in North Sea
Superfast ΙΧ and Superfast Χ were voted the best ships in the North Sea by the readers of Britain's “Which?” consumer magazine.
The survey included fifteen vessels operated by six different companies. Superfast ΙΧ and Superfast Χ sail on the Rosyth-Zeebrugge route that links the Scotland to Belgium.
“Which?” is published by the 700,000-member British Consumers' Association. The survey focused on ships covering sailings of four hours or longer between the British Isles and continental Europe, specifically routes from the northern and eastern shores of Britain to Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany.
In the survey, Superfast ΙΧ and Superfast Χ ranked first overall along with two Ρ&Ο Ferries vessels in the categories for bar facilities, public lounges and areas, and cabins.
Superfast has been sailing the Rosyth-Zeebrugge route since May 2002. The company won the route in a Scottish tender that attracted 42 companies. Since Superfast began its sailings from Scotland and Brussels, its two ferries covering the route have carried over 185,000 passengers and 30,000 freight vehicles.

Starwood unveils its “Spa Collection”
Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. has unveiled its Starwood Spa Collection. Starwood - which runs the global Sheraton, Westin, W, Four Points by Sheraton - already owns more than 180 spas worldwide from which the Starwood Spa Collection was selected.
The collection comprises Starwood's 30 best spas, including Spa Gaucin at the St. Regis Beach Resort at Dana Point, California; the Royal Orchid Mandara Spa at the Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel & Towers in Bangkok; and the GB Sa at the Grand Bretagne Hotel in Athens.
The spas were developed on the "seven pillars of well-being" - beauty, balance, harmony, water, vitality, nature, and nutrition.

Hellas Flying Dolphins negociating new, fast ferry
Hellas Flying Dolphins executives and staff gathered on board the vessel "Nefeli" on January 21 for the customary cutting of the New Year's pita.
Guests, including senior officials of the Coast Guard and passenger shipping industry, were welcomed by the Manolis Koulendakis, vice chairman of the company's board of directors.
Vassilis Zaharioudakis, Hellas Flying Dolphins general manager, thanked the staff and crews for their efforts to help the company return to profitability. He also announced that Hellas Flying Dolphins is in the final stages of negotiations for construction of a new highspeed-class passenger and vehicle ferry to be introduced into the company's routes in the summer of 2005. Representatives of the Austal, FBM-Babcock, and Fjellstrand shipyards, with which Hellas Flying Dolphins is negotiating the newbuilding, were present at the ceremony.

Dodecanese Chamber commissions tourism survey
The Dodecanese Chamber of Commerce and Dodecanese Development Enterprise (DETAP) are in the final stages of compiling data from a travel survey conducted during the months of September and October at Diagoras Airport on Rhodes.
The survey was designed by a working group of the Dodecanese Tourism Professionals Association. The sample of 1,319 respondents was drawn from tourists traveling through the airport between September 1 and October 31, 2003.
The questionnaire queried respondents on the island's tourism facilities and services, how and when they booked their holidays, and average spending per person in their party during their vacation. Other questions concerned where the holidaymakers had obtained information about Rhodes, whether they used the internet in helping decide on their holiday destination, and how they ranked Rhodes compared to other destinations.
The questionnaires also collected valuable demographic information, including age and country of origin, on tourists visiting the island during September and October.
The in-depth survey was part of a pilot program by the Dodecanese Chamber of Commerce to collect data about tourism traffic on the island. It will likely be extended to other islands in the Dodecanese group.
The survey results were expected to be presented just after press time, at the end of February.

British Airways launches February specials
British Airways is offering special short-stay packages in London during the month of February in collaboration with leading hotels, from two-star to five-star facilities. Packages, valid through February 29, included one economy-class round-trip ticket from Athens to London, and two nights at the hotel (double occupancy), including continental breakfast. Package prices do not include airport taxes, and special prices are also available for travelers who wish to extend their stay beyond two nights.
Package prices start at 330.24 euros per person at the two-star Royal National Hotel and reach 442.96 euros per person at the five-star Langham Hilton.
British Airways has three flights daily between Athens and London's Heathrow Airport. Additional information and reservations can be made by calling 210 898 1050.

SIA wins customer service award
Air Transport World, a trade journal, has named Singapore Airlines as the recipient of its Customer Service Award.
"At a time when airlines are offering fewer and fewer services, Singapore Airlines has never stopped aiming higher, seeking new ways to satisfy its customers," the magazine's editors said.
The magazine notes that in its 32 years of operation as an independent carrier, Singapore Airlines had emerged as an innovator in the in-flight leisure and was the first to offer personal IFE units in all three fare categories.

Hoteliers protest targeted legislation on ΕΤΑ properties
The Panhellenic Federation of Hoteliers (ΡΟΧ) expressed its disagreement and regret at the spate of legislative amendments being offered in Parliament regarding prime tourism real estate.
At a news conference in January, ΡΟΧ officials cited a legislative amendment regarding the properties of owned by Hellenic Tourism Properties (ΕΤΑ), the real estate arm of the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ) which offered "scandalous development incentives" even after the cancellation of related international tenders.
ΡΟΧ officials said that the policy of introducing targeted or snapshot amendments, that is legislation to fit very narrowly defined cases in order to accommodate specific interests, had unfortunately been extended to facilitating pending cases involving the private sector and privately held properties as well. Such actions, said ΡΟΧ, do not constitute a framework for a development policy able to attract substantial investment to the tourism sector. On the contrary, the group said, this only diluted true competition and undermined the feeling of assurance that the state is obligated to provide potential investors.
ΡΟΧ said that a comprehensive solution was required that would address the overall needs of the sector given that the Greek hotel industry is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises that are faced with equally acute problems as those attempted to be resolved through snapshot legislation.
The group said that it was vital for the hotel sector to find a final and fair way to resolve how building licenses are issued for hotel units created under Public Law 2160/1993. It also called for the eligibility for ΡΕΡ and ΕΡΑΝ programs be extended to include all hotel enterprises with less than 50 rooms and in categories Β or lower.

Strintzis sells Blue Sky
Strintzis Shipping has reached an agreement with Flanmare Shipping S.Α. for the sale of the passenger and vehicle ferry Blue Sky. The ship will be turned over to its new owners in March.
Strintzis said in a statement that Blue Sky's sale was within the framework of the company's program to renew its fleet.

SEEDE protest shift in key-category policy
Owners of rental rooms have written to Development Minister Akis Tsohadzopoulos regarding the implementation of regulations regarding the classification of these units into categories designated by keys, or kleidia.
According to SEEDE, the confederation of entrepreneurs who operate rental room units, the minister had assured sector representatives that the process would be implemented as outlined under Articles 2 and 3 of Presidential Decree 337/2000. But SEEDE says that in applying the measure in practice, the ministry's general secretariat for tourism had insisted on classifying these units according to Article 4. In its memo to the minister, SEEDE appealed for this point to be clarified so that rental-room owners could meet the April 30 deadline for joining the program.

Gulf Air spreads its wings for Australia
Gulf Air, in cooperation with Olympic Airways, is offering "lovers" a Valentine discount of 25 percent on all tickets to and from Australia purchased between February 9 and February 15, 2004. The discount is valid on all travel between February 28 and May 31. Under the special discount, economy fares are 700 euros (instead of 940 euros) for economy class seats and 1,900 euros (instead of 2,500 euros) for first class seats.
Gulf Air and Olympic Airways offer daily flights from Greece to Australia via Bahrain and Singapore. The route is served by Airbus Α320 planes on the Athens-Bahrain leg and Airbus Α340 aircraft on the Bahrain to Sydney leg of the flight.
Gulf Air was founded in 1950 and today belongs jointly to the United Kingdom of Bahrain, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. Its network covers 45 destinations in 33 countries on the European and Asian continents, including the Middle East.

Greek month on German rail
German rail commuters got a taste of Greece in February, which was declared "Greek Month" on German rail.
The highly successful promotional campaign, now in its fourth year, is being coordinated for the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ) by Martakis in cooperation with the German rail company Die Bahn and its advertising subsidiary Deutsche Eisebahn Reklame.
Participants in this year's promotion include the Lesvos, Cyclades, Syros, and Pieria prefectures, the Naxos Hoteliers' Association, Grecotel, G Hotels, Superfast Ferries, Attiki Honey, Plomari ouzo, and Tsantalis Wines.
As part of the campaign, Greek dishes and beverages are featured on train restaurants and bistros aimed at promoting Greek holiday destinations. Dishes were proposed by tourist regions although the final menu was decided earlier this year by a special panel organized in Frankfurt.
The campaign was formally launched at a press conference in Frankfurt. The program and foods to be sampled has been posted online but is also distributed in leaflets printed in English, French, and Italian.
During last year's "Greek Month" promotion, 3,000 bottles of ouzo, 12,000 bottles of red and white wines, 23,000 portions of Greek salad, 19,500 portions of vegetable soup, 14,500 portions of bean soup, 7,000 portions of cod, and 10,000 portions of Greek yogurt and honey were consumed.
"Greek Month" is organized by Martakis Tourism Consultants.

Conference on Mediterranean diet
The healthful Mediterranean diet will be the focus of a two-day conference held at the Athinais Center in Athens from April 21-23.
The conference and exhibition are organized by Heliotopos Conferences under the auspices of the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ), ETHIAGE, and KEOSOE.
Presentations will focus on the features and evolution of Mediterranean cuisine as well as problems in preserving traditional cuisines. Speakers include Elliott Berry from Israel, Giovanni de Gaefano from Italy, Dun Gifford from the U.S., Denis Lairon from France, Miguel Gonzalez from Spain, Luis Serra Majem from Spain, and Antonia Trihopoulou, Antonis Kafatos, and Connie Philipson from Greece.
Information is available online at http://heliotopos.conferences.gr/mediet2004 or by calling 210 973 0697.

Tourism Festival to be held during the Olympic Games
The Greek tourism industry is being invited to participate in the Greek Tourism Festival to be held in Athens during the Olympic Games.
The festival, to be held August 19-22 in Pedio tou Areos Park, aims at exploiting the concentration of visitors in the Greek capital because of the 2004 Games to promote Greece as a travel destination. Organizers said participants would include Olympic cities - Athens, Iraklio, Thessaloniki, Volos, and Patras - Olympic sponsors, Greek regional tourism enterprises, and prefectures.
In addition to destinations, the festival will also highlight Greek cuisine.
The festival is being organized by Alfa Line; for information about stalls and prices, call 210 902 1518.

Best Western Fenix hosts International Quality Control Seminar
Best Western International has selected Best Western Fenix in Glyfada, a coastal suburb of Athens, as the venue for its seminar on quality control.
The four-day seminar was attended by certified quality control inspectors from Europe and the United States. During seminar sessions participants were briefed on the international hotel chain's progress in implementing "minimum standards" in its properties through a series of inspections.
Quality control has been a priority for Best Western in recent year for all of the hotels in the chain. To implement its goal of high quality standards, Best Western has introduced a rigorous quality control system to support its properties.

ΗΑΤΤΑ queries implementation of student vacation programs
The Hellenic Association of Tourism and Travel Agents (ΗΑΤΤΑ) has issued a statement questioning the status of the so-called White Weeks and Green Weeks program of subsidized vacations in the countryside for Greek school pupils. Its statement was prompted by what the association said was a barrage of claims and charges filed with ΗΑΤΤΑ about how the program was being implemented.
The White Week and Green Week programs aimed at boosting tourism in remote rural and mountainous areas. But ΗΑΤΤΑ said serious questions had been raised about how the program was being administered by Agrotouristiki Α.Ε. which Hellenic Tourism Properties (ΕΤΑ), the real estate arm of the Greek National Tourism Organization, had contracted for this purpose. Among the questions raised by ΗΑΤΤΑ was the legal framework under which Agrotouristiki had been contracted to administer this program and whether it intended to supplant travel agencies.
In addition to a issuing a public statement, ΗΑΤΤΑ also released a copy of a letter on this issue it had sent to Development Minister Akis Tsohadzopoulos, whose portfolio includes tourism, and Education Minister Petros Efthimiou.

ΡΟΕΤ responds to ΗΑΤΤΑ claims on subsidized student holidays
The Panhellenic Federation of Tourism Enterprises (ΡΟΕΤ) has issued a statement responding to public questions over the administration of the White Weeks and Green Weeks holiday programs raised by the Hellenic Association of Tourism and Travel Agents (ΗΑΤΤΑ).
In its statement, ΡΟΕΤ rhetorically asked why ΗΑΤΤΑ had not protested to the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ) when Agrotouristiki had applied for a travel agent license. Instead, ΡΟΕΤ said, ΗΑΤΤΑ's protests had been prompted by the fact that Agrotouristiki had subcontracted ΡΟΕΤ, which includes 15 travel agent associations and several tour bus operators, for the project. It added that ΡΟΕΤ had proposed to share the project with a non-member tour bus owners federation active in greater Athens.
This, ΡΟΕΤ concluded, was how associations acted to protect all their members rather than a single member, as ΗΑΤΤΑ was attempting.
It said by thus sharing, Agrotouristiki's project had been divided among several associations rather than to a single travel agency.

Aegean Airlines posts 2003 data
Aegean Airlines has reported an 18 percent increase in passenger traffic in 2003 over the previous year.
The airline, which just concluded its fifth year of operation, said in a statement that it had served 2,854,000 passengers in 2003 and posted a turnover of 223 million euros. It attributed this growth to a more effective deployment of its fleet and improved productivity of its staff. As a result, the statement said, the company was expected to post profits of an estimated five million euros.
Aegean said that its traffic on domestic routes was up 18 percent from 2002 with a total increase of 5.4 percent in domestic traffic at Athens International Airport. On its domestic routes, the airline had served more than two million passengers in 2003.
Aegean now flies to 14 domestic destinations, including Kos and Chios which were added in November. Aegean's BSP for domestic routes reached 51 percent, up two points from 49 percent in 2002.
On its eight foreign routes, Aegean served over 800,000 passengers and posted an 18 percent increase in foreign passenger traffic in a year when total passenger traffic through Athens International Airport to foreign destinations rose by just 2.6 percent.
Aegean said its 2003 performance on foreign and domestic routes allowed it to increase its market share of traffic through Athens International Airport from 14 percent in 2002 to 17 percent.
The airline also pointed out that while passenger traffic had risen, fare prices had dropped by an average of five percent in a bid to make the airline more competitive. It pointed to promotional programs through which passengers could book single domestic fares for as low as 39 euros before airport taxes - which in this case were 23 euros or 55 percent of the total ticket price. Aegean said that these taxes were a disincentive for traffic growth and were the highest in Europe.
Reviewing the first four-and-a-half years of operation since its launch in May 1999, Aegean said that it had transported more than 12 million passengers on over 150,000 flights.
Aegean employs 1,300 people and has code-share agreements with the Italian airlines Air One and Alpi Eagles for flights to Palermo, Genoa, Venice, and Turin. It is also the largest user of the Thessaloniki and Iraklio airports and second largest user of Athens International Airport. Aegean was the first Greek airline to introduce online reservations through its website, www.aegeanair.com

Elounda Beach receives “Leaders Award”
The Elounda Beach resort has been awarded the "leading hotel of Greece" award under the "Leaders of the Year" prizes organized recently in cooperation with the Elpida charitable foundation. The Elounda Beach is one of the Helios Hotels and Resorts.
The awards were presented at a glittering ceremony in Athens attended by former United Nations secretary general Boutros Boutros Ghali. Alexios Koimissis, general manager of the Mandonanakis Group which owns the Elounda Beach, received the award on the group's behalf.
"Each new distinction for Helios Hotels is a justification of our efforts to provide high quality service at all levels. It is not coincidental that of the 300 'Leading Hotels of the World' five are in Greece and three belong to the Mandonanakis Group," he said.
Elounda Beach has also been honored by the World Travel Awards and received a distinction from the international travel agents' association.

Women in tourism discuss Athens today
"Athens Today: a travel destination that offers many options" is the topic of a conference organized on February 26 by the Association of Greek Women in Tourism.
The conference was held at the Grand Bretagne Hotel in Athens and organized under the auspices of the City of Athens. The program featured presentations by intellectuals and aimed at highlighting the modern city and its cultural activities.
The conference was the latest activity organized by the Association of Greek Women in Tourism. The association's goal this year will be to expand its cooperation network both among its members and with the members of the international federation of women in tourism, IFWTO.
As a first step, the association will launch a newsletter in March to inform members of activities. Members are kindly requested to submit brief (30-40 words) descriptions of their enterprise and personal activities. Information will also be posted on its website, www.womenintourism.gr.
To contact the association's membership secretary, Anastasia Loukissa, call 6945 718007 or send an email to info@tourismmuseum.gr

ΕΤΙΝ on scouting mission to Spain
ΕΤΙΝ, the Ionian Islands Tourism Association, took advantage of its participation in the Fitur 04 travel expo in Madrid earlier this year to gauge prospects for increasing tourist traffic from Spain to the Ionian Islands.
ΕΤΙΝ's first participation in the Madrid expo was arranged with the close cooperation of Α. Panagopoulou, head of the Spain and Latin America tourism desk. The Ionian Islands' inclusion in the Greek National Tourism Organization (ΕΟΤ) pavilion helped ΕΤΙΝ gain exposure for its members to the 40,000 trade visitors, 100,000 guests, and over 7,300 journalists who attended the trade show. Most queries were about Zakynthos, Corfu, and Kefallonia, as well as about cruises in the Ionian.
The Madrid fair was inaugurated by King Juan Carlos and Queen Sophia. The Greek delegation was led by ΕΟΤ chief Ν. Dimadis, while media coverage of the event included CNN, and Spanish television channels TV1, TV2, and TV4.
An estimated four million Spaniards travel abroad for their holidays each year, although just 190,000 visit Greece. ΕΤΙΝ officials hope that the introduction of charter flights to Corfu by Iberojet this year will help increase the number of Spanish holidaymakers in the Ionian Islands.
ΕΤΙΝ says another boost for the Ionian Islands is the best-selling novel by the Spanish writer Javier Reverte that is set on the island of Ithaki. ΕΤΙΝ has also invited the journalist Paolo Tiengo to visit the Ionian Islands as the association's guest.
In addition to ΕΤΙΝ, Greek companies or associations participating in the Madrid fair included Grecotel, Elounda, Myconian, Intercontinental, and Triaina hotels, Olympic Airways, Golden Sun Cruises, and the Fantasy, Monogram, Triaena, Amphitrion, Andy Tours, Special Tours, and Renaissance Tours agencies.

POET warms media over election focus
Tourism industry representatives have expressed their concern about the media's focus on the March 7 elections at the expense of other issues such as tourism, especially in such a critical year for the sector. "It is a given that throughout this month, the media's focus will be monopolized by the election campaign, politicians' speeches, and talk shows," the Panhellenic Association of Tourism Enterprises (ΡΟΕΤ) said in a statement. "Thus tourism is being left on auto pilot and its future looms ominous. As an example, let us mention the pessimistic early bookings for incoming tourism this year, which also happens to be an Olympic year. Tourism ent. are in a dire financial state, such as that of ROC, which was a great blow to the Greek tourism industry and simply compounded existing problems."
Addressing the media, ΡΟΕΤ said that tourism issues should be given special emphasis on current affairs shows instead of monopolizing debate time with statistics or speculation about what will happen after the elections. "What we demand of the state is to look problems squarely in the eye, such as the total lack of a promotional campaign abroad, stopping the tourism decline, and keeping alive the Greek cruise sector at all cost because the tomorrow promised by the powers that be looms black for the Greek tourism industry, which today is being neglected," the ΡΟΕΤ statement concluded.

Politicians square off over Western Greece
Kostas Zaimis, president of the Western Greece Development Institute and a candidate for election in the Achaia province, was one of four panelists participating in a recent discussion on new technologies and tourism organized recently in Athens for INADE by iForce communications.
Also participating in the discussion were Aris Spiliotopoulos, an Achaia native who is a candidate for election in the second electoral district of Athens, INADE deputy chairman Yiannis Taloumis, and Georgia Iliopoulou, president of the Center for Cultural Studies and Applications.

From My Notebook – By Connie Soloyanis
- Cruise passengers around the world are on the increase and now number over ten million a year, and prospects are for further growth in these forms of holiday. Top numbers of patrons at present are from the U.S.Α., with the Caribbean tops in destination.
- The only area in which there appears a downward trend in cruising participation is in the Aegean and in the eastern Mediterranean.
- There is a new daily news service concentrated on news of cruises called Rolling Pin Cruise Daily. It gives reports from around the world, with its bulletins available on the Internet.
- Many in the local travel business opine that all proferred of increases in tourism for Greece (i.e. primarily from ΗΝΤΟ officials) are basically . One travel professional volunteered for government officials to .
- Whatwith the El. Venizelos International Airport of Athens deemed as the most expensive in Europe, it is no surprise that there is a movement within the local travel industry to have a new airport for Athens.
- At the moment at appears somewhat positive that the Parthenon Marbles previously known as the Elgin Marbles) will be in Greece for the Olympic Games this coming August.
- In China mobile telephones now outnumber line telephones by some 270 million to 260 million.
- The use of cell telephones has become so rampant around the world that there are now police crackdowns on car drivers who use them while in motion. Special penalties for drivers who use handheld phones have been instituted in such diverse places as Hong Kong, Japan, Italy and Vietnam. And, shortly in the United Kingdom.
- Not only are more and more airlines welcoming pet dogs to fly with their masters, but some leading hotels around the world are to welcome such guests some with or without . Special, new services, including special menus, are being featured at hotels in Paris, Berlin, Hong Kong and Capetown.
- Among the new airlines is Smart Wings, a budget Czech operation, set to start service, initially within Europe, in May.
- Another new airline, to called Ted, is being introduced by United Airlines. Based in Denver, Ted is scheduled to operate initially within the continental U.S.Α.
- Japan Airlines is cancelling some 500 flights to make needed repairs on 18 of its aircraft.
- Something new for subway systems: The Mexico City metro system now distributes paperback books to commuters, so they may read while riding. Some seven million books are available, all hopefully returned. The move is aimed at twofold purposes: reducing crime and creating a hospitable atmosphere.
- Utazas, the annual travel trade fair of Hungary, held in Budapest, is focusing more attention on Greece this year than on any other holiday destination.
- Wisdom Department: At one annual travel and tourism show it was observed: