9 out of 10 tourists like Greece, GTO survey shows

According to a survey conducted by the Greek Tourist Organisation (GTO-EOT), 9 out of 10 foreign visitors to Greece say they are pleased with their stay in the country. The survey, which was was carried out by QED Market Research on a sample of 2,179 people at 13 entry points in Greece on behalf of the GTO, showed that a vast majority of the respondents rated their experience in Greece as either very good or excellent.
The survey was conducted between October 12 and 24 and involved personal interviews with male and female tourists aged from 20 to 60 at 10 Greek airports. 36% of those entering Greece via airports said their stay in Greece exceeded their expectations, compared to 31% of road tourists.
6 out of 10 responded they would probably recommend Greece as a tourist destination, while over half said they would return to Greece. The average stay of visitors entering Greece via airports was 8.2 days, while road tourists stayed just under 3 days.
The main reasons for choosing Greece as a holiday destination were the mild weather, the affordable cost and fewer people during Autumn over other competing destinations.
 6 out of 10 air tourists says the sun, sea and gastronomy were their main reasons for picking Greece, while half said they liked Greece for the hospitality and the natural beauty of the country.
Half of the road visitors mentioned the food and shopping for their reasons, while 9 of 10 air tourists and 6 of 10 road tourists said they visited Greece in Autumn for recreational reasons.
Finally, culture is also considered as an important factor for visitors to choose Greece.

We wish you Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.

Greece Set to Gain in 2017 as Safe Destination

Greece is expected to gain from the instability in the wider Mediterranean region with pre-bookings setting the trend for 2017, Alpha Bank analysts reported this week.

According to the Alpha Bank assessment, which cites data from the National Bank of Greece, the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE) and the Foundation of Economic & Industrial Research (IOBE), there is considerable tourism potential for 2017 with Greece remaining a steady and safe choice for holidaymakers.

As 2016 draws to a close, tourist arrivals are expected to reach 24.5 million against 23.5 million in 2015, excluding cruise travelers and despite the ongoing refugee crisis with resultant revenue however remaining at the same levels with last year.

Alpha Bank analysts also referred to the return of tourists from Russia, with the number up by 18.9 percent in the first nine months of 2016, against a drop of 62.1 percent in the corresponding period last year.

According to SETE meanwhile, the number of arrivals are also reflecting the positive trend for the new year with the country’s major airports welcoming 25.1 percent more visitors in October and 13.5 percent more in September demonstrating that the tourism season is extending beyond the traditional summer months of June, July and August, with autumn months now playing a crucial role in the overall performance of the sector.
(gtp)

Athens among the top 17 places to travel in 2017

Conde Nast Traveler published the list with the best places to travel in 2017.
According to the list, the best place to visit in 2017 is Canada.
Athens is fifth on the list.

 "Athens has always been known as an old city, that’s nothing new.
Instead, what is new is its burgeoning status as a modern arts capital: Look no further than the recently opened, Renzo Piano-designed, $623 million Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, which houses the National Opera and the National Library of Greece, sits on the biggest park in Athens, and is the first public building in Greece to achieve a Platinum LEED certification. The National Museum of Contemporary Art also partially reopened in a renovated brewery after a 12-year closure, and in April, the city will co-host documenta, the exhibition of modern and contemporary art that takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany (it’s the first time the hosting duties will be split between two cities).Though it’s long played second fiddle to other European capitals like Rome, and merely seen as a stopover point on the way to, say, Corfu, Athens has once again arrived."

Photo of the day..

South Crete, Damnoni beach...

CNTraveller: Greece voted best country to visit in the world!

What are your favourite countries to visit?
In our Readers' Travel Awards you told us you really can't get enough of Greece, which continues to capture your imagination with crowd-pleasing scores across the board.
You think Italy produces the best food (closely followed by France), the USA has the finest places to stay and South Africa is fantastic when it comes to value for money.
Yet when it comes to scenery, it seems no other destination can touch the vast open spaces and dramatic coastlines of Australia.
The Readers' Travel Awards celebrates the best of the best in travel, as voted for by people who love travel: the readers of Condé Nast Traveller.

CNTraveller

New Review on Tripadvisor: “4th visit and better than ever.”

The owners Eleni and Giorgos are exceptionally helpful and welcoming..

Reviewed yesterday 

It is a real pleasure to stay here hence our frequent returns!

Normally we do not visit the same place twice and this was our 4th stay. 

 

The owners Eleni and Giorgos are exceptionally helpful and welcoming and the apartments cleaned every day to a very high standard. 

 

Beach and shower towels are provided and changed whenever necessary and the beach is very close to the apartments. 

 

We visit in October and the temperature is just perfect, warm in the daytime and cooler in the evenings. 

 

Stayed October 2016, travelled as a couple.

See here: Tripadvisor

Plakiassuites: Ranked #1 of 49 Speciality Lodging in Plakias, Retyhymno - Crete, Greece!

  

 103 Reviews Certificate of Excellence

Two Greek islands among the best in the world

The readers of travel magazine “Conde Nast Traveler” included 2 Greek islands among the best in the world.

Over 300,000 readers of the famous tourist publication picked Mykonos and Crete in the top 15 list of best islands outside the US.

Photo of the day: Today at the beach...

Photo of the day: Autumn sunset

Video escape: The Beach is always a good idea!

Crete is located in the southeast part of the European continent and temperature never drops below 20º C from September until November.

The average sunshine totals seven hours.

Plakias is 35 kilometres south of Rethymno, on the southern coast of Crete on the Libyan Sea and the water temperature in the south shores (washed by the Libyan sea) reaches 23º C and the average air temperature is 26º C!