Another gorgeous Cretan sunset last night...

Plakias, is a small fishing village and produces sunset like this..

https://www.plakiassuites.com/

Greek beaches: 486 Blue Flag awards!

Greece Ranks 2nd in World for 2017 Blue Flag Beaches

Greece ranked second place in the world on the 2017 Blue Flag quality award list for beaches and marinas, among 47 countries (EEPF)

 

A total of 486 beaches and 12 marinas were honored with the quality “Blue Flag” award in Greece for 2017.

The Blue Flag is awarded to beaches that follow requirements that include Environmental Education and Information, Water Quality, Environmental Management and Safety and Services.

 

For the complete list of all 486 Greek “blue flag” beaches, press here.

TUI: Greece to See Leap in Arrivals from Germany in 2017

Greece is expected to see a record number of bookings from Germany this year, according to travel giant TUI.

The German tour operator said on Monday that bookings from Germany to Greece are up 23 percent compared to the year before.

By destination, bookings to Crete are up by 14 percent, to Rhodes by 26 percent, to Kos by 14 percent, to Corfu by 6 percent and to the Western Peloponnese by 32 percent.

According to,TUI’s chief operating officer, Marek Andryszak, on a scale of 10, TUI’s customer satisfaction for Greece has risen to 8.7 percent.

“Quality of hotels and service levels have never been better than today,” he said, adding that Greek hotels have made great progress especially in the areas of “services”, “hotel facilities” and “hospitality”.

Greece is ranked second among TUI’s most popular air travel destinations worldwide after Spain.
(GTP)

28 million arrivals expected in Greece in 2017

Positive signs for industry 

All the signs indicate that Greek tourism is expecting a very successful summer season.

Greek hotel owners and industry professionals are confident the current season will be extended based on messages by foreign tour operators and are already setting their eyes on the next season. 

2017 is considered a success, despite the slow start in the year, as the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) expects arrivals to exceed 28 million (including cruise-ships), with estimates of revenue reaching 14.5 billion euros.

According to a study conducted by GBR Consulting, Athens and Thessaloniki saw a double digit rise in revenues during the first quarter of 2017, while the data for resort bookings was also impressive. 

Meanwhile, the Hellenic Hotel Federation predict vacancy capacities will hover around record numbers for the season, provided stability remains in the wider region. 

However, the issue of the tax for overnight stays, which is scheduled to take effect from the start of 2018 is of concern in the industry, as it will push revenues down.

Traditional galatopita

By: Georgia Kofina | 23.05.2017 | Desserts, Greek Classics, Mediterranean Cooking

Galatopita, or milk pie, is a traditional Greek dessert that is made with or without crisp phyllo and a super-satisfying custard cream made with semolina flour. You will absolutely love it!

Serves: – Preparation: 15′ Cooks in: 60′ Ready in: 1:15′
 
Ingredients
3lt sheep milk
1½ cup fine semolina flour
½ cup semolina flour
1½ cup granulated sugar
6 eggs
½ tsp vanilla
lemon or orange zest
2 tbsp butter, melted
icing sugar + cinnamon for dusting

Method

Step 1
Brush a heavy pan with water. Bring milk, 1/2 cup of sugar, lemon zest and butter to a simmer. Whisk in semolina, a little at a time, with a wooden spoon, and simmer, whisking constantly, until custard thickens and reaches consistency of loose mashed potatoes. Remove pan from heat and let cool a little.

Step 2
Preheat oven at 170C. Whisk together eggs, remaining sugar and vanilla in a large bowl until well combined. Add in warm semolina mixture (not hot) and whisk, a little at a time, to temper yolks.

Step 3
Pour mixture in a baking pan (40cm diameter) brushed well with butter. Put oven rack in middle position and bake for 45-50 minutes until filling is golden and top is nicely browned (to test, insert a skewer into the middle of the pie; if the skewer comes out clean, it’s ready).

Step 4
Serve warm or at room temperature, dusted with confectioners sugar and cinnamon.