Further recovery of the hotel market is foreseen by the leading players in tourism, expressing their satisfaction with this year’s season, which was above expectations, according to what was reported at the Awards Ceremony
Greek Hospitality Awards 2021
(#grha21), held on Friday 15 October. The
Greek Hospitality Awards 2021
(#grha21), organized for the 7th consecutive year by ethosEVENTS, in collaboration with Tourism Media & Events, the financial & business portal banks.com.gr and the MONEY magazine and were carried out this year hybrid, with speakers and award winners in physical presence in a specially designed area at the hotel Divani Apollon Palace & Thalasso and with the public watching and participating digitally through the LiveOn, the first complete, all-in-one, digital platform for Business Communication and Events, and its 3D digital exhibition centre, the LiveOn Expo Complex.
The top distinction “Top Greek Hotel 2021” was won by the Katikies Santorini and the top distinction “Top Greek Resort 2021″ won the Sani Resort. ΣIn total, the following were awarded 108 award categories in 4 thematic sections, and 193 hotels & tourism businesses from all over Greece were awarded!
See all the winners of the English Hospitality Awards 2021 at:
https://ethosevents.eu/greek–hospitality–awards-2021-nikites/
The following 7 honours were also awarded:
Greek Hospitality Leader:
κ.
Mr. Andreas
Andreas Metaxas
, CEO, Metaxa Hospitality Group
Greek Hospitality Pioneer
: κ.
Mr. Harris
Siganos
Founder & CEO, Zeus International
Greek Hospitality Personality
: κ.
Panos
Konstantinidis
CEO
, SWOT Hospitality
Greek Hospitality Rising Star
: κ.
Panagiotis
Pantazopoulos
,
Managing Director, Trésor Hospitality
English
Hospitality
Mentor
Mr. Elias Kikilias, Director General of SETE Institute (INSEETE)
Best
English
Hospitality
Region
: South Aegean Region – Mr. Georgios Hadjimarkos, Regional Governor of South Aegean- Best Greek Hospitality Municipality: City of Paros & κ. Mark Ι. Kovaios, Mayor
The Award Ceremony was presented by Mr. Haris Digridakis, Journalist, Managing Director ofTourism Media & Events and Ms. Maria Nikoltsiou, Journalist, News Presenter, Alpha TV.
In his introductory address, Mr. Konstantinos Ouzounis, CEO of ethosGROUP, stated that “We have now highlighted the Greece that stands out. We, for our part, are the “vehicle” that will carry and promote the successes of the industry, in Greece and abroad”.
The Minister of Rural Development and Food , Mr. Spilios Livanos , gave an institutional address via LiveOn , stating that “undoubtedly the Greek tourism product is our great weapon. Our tourism has recovered this year, foreign visitors have given a vote of confidence. As the Ministry of Rural Development and Food we are involved in strengthening and promoting the tourism product. Green agri-tourism and other forms of tourism are just some examples of how we are breathing new life into tourism by helping to lengthen the season.”
The Deputy Minister of Tourism, Mrs. Sofia Zacharaki, said in her address: “The awards are important, as these awards, which are an institution, reward the stamina and tenacity of the Greek hotel industry. This year, without any sense of exaggeration, we can say that Greece is the winner, implementing all the protocols.
The recovery was accompanied by an increase in arrivals, revenues and average expenditure. The Ministry of Tourism has already developed a new campaign for mountain tourism, new plans and projects. With funds from the Recovery Fund, infrastructure will be upgraded, special seminars will be subsidised, while the sector will be supported by the new NSRF and of course the public investment programme.”
Mrs. Katerina Notopoulou, MP for SYRIZA in Thessaloniki, Minister of Tourism, noted in her address that “Our thoughts are with those who are struggling to hold on in the face of adversity. The pandemic is not over, climate change is here, as is the energy crisis.
There must be targeted and sustained support for the sector. Together we all need to jointly design the strategies to solve the pathologies that will take us forward to sustainable development. The key ingredient is the people-centred approach, i.e. how to support the representatives of tourism, a strength of our national economy.”
A short greeting was given by Mrs. Athanasia Deligiannaki, Contract Manager of ekdromi.gr. He spoke of awards-institution, stressing that ekdromi.gr stood as a helper in the industry. “Even in a difficult season we supported the hoteliers. This year we have made a positive sign both for us and for the hotels. We are confident that the success will continue in 2022,” he said.
Titled: “Value Added Services in Inspection & Certification, in the hotel industry”, Ms. Maria Liontaki, Product Manager Tourism & Certification, Ms. Maria Liontaki, Product Manager Tourism & Certification, will present her presentation. Hospitality, Lead Auditor TÜV HELLAS (TÜV NORD) presented the milestones of TÜV HELLAS, which since 1987 has been a member of the world’s largest operators. He stressed that tourism is the backbone of the Greek economy: “We believe that with the Inspection, Certification and Training, we are assisting the industry to comply with the institutional framework, national, European and international, in the best possible way. The pandemic has been a critical issue for all. The tourism sector has shown that it can manage a crisis well.”
Finally, Mr. Orestis Phoebus Pitsavas, Head of Business Development, LiveOn, in his speech entitled “LiveOn’s Vision for the Digital Transformation of the Greek Tourism Ecosystem”, presented to the participants the first complete, all-in-one, digital platform for Business Communication and Events, and its 3D digital exhibition centre, the LiveOn Expo Complex, through which the online broadcast of the Awards Ceremony was conducted.
In the context of the event, a very interesting fireside chat was held by Haris Digridakis, CEO of Toyrism Media & Events, Radio Producer Alpha Radio 898, with Mr. Dimitris Manikis President for Europe, Middle East, Eurasia and Africa (EMEA) Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
Ο κ. Manikis spoke of a difficult year, during which the world reacted positively and tourist traffic exceeded all estimates. As a participant in many conferences, he conveyed the dominant global trends discussed internationally regarding sustainable development, the rise of resorts, the choice of secondary cities (beyond the capital of each country), while at the same time he expressed concern that executives do not choose the tourism/hotel industry as a career. As Mr. Manikis, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts opens an office in Greece. “The Greek market is very important for us. There is room for everyone now. We have entered the all inclusive business and we will bring branded customers (all inclusive) to Greece. A move that will pay off in the coming months,” he estimated.
See all the winners of the English Hospitality Awards 2021 at:
https://ethosevents.eu/greek–hospitality–awards-2021-nikites/
For detailed information you can visit https://ethosevents.eu/ and https://grha21.ethosevents.liveon.tech/
