One of the biggest stakes in tourism is not the number of visitors arriving in the country each year but the decade-long planning and the preservation of the authenticity of the destination. The country's identity is directly intertwined with its culture in every aspect of life and this is something that tourists of all kinds want to experience.
But what does authenticity mean and how can each place develop tourism adapted to its own conditions? As Alexandros Vassilikos, president of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels, told APE-MPA, the most important thing is for each destination, each local community to decide the type of tourism it wants to focus on and to create the appropriate infrastructure.
«In Greece we are lucky enough to have everything, fortunately. But we need strategic choices about which pillars each place will develop. For example, there are islands that have gotten away with climbing tourism and this has significantly expanded the season. There definitely needs to be a national umbrella where the government sets some general conditions but each place decides how it wants to develop and where to focus,» Vassilikos explains.
He notes that numbers are no longer the point of emphasis but long-term planning: «We have stopped talking about numbers and money as institutions. What we need is to do 10-year planning and I am glad that with the current leadership of the ministry we are not talking about numbers and records but about trends. There are other values in tourism that if they are lost, both authenticity and the tourism product will be lost. It will be a double loss. There are very serious discussions about the sustainability of Greek hotels and we have already made a proposal to the ministry.».
Another extremely important parameter linked to the identity of the destination is gastronomy and the promotion of local products. «Gastronomy is an integral part of our tradition, our culture and is an experiential approach.
Hellenic Breakfast is a nice example with local pacts signed by producers and hoteliers. Authenticity is needed at all levels, as well as in the agri-food sector which will be strengthened with the right policies and the right strategy. The aim is to adapt the menu to the products of local production and the season to reduce imports and maintain the authenticity of local cuisine and, by extension, the tourist product.».
Gastronomy is an integral part of our culture but cultural tourism as a concept essentially includes all types of tourism. As the professor and president of the Department of Tourism Management at the University of West Attica, Katerina Kikilia, points out, «Culture is linked to everyday life, trends, everything. It is the strongest part of Greece and that is why the country must adapt all modern trends in tourism to its culture. What is required is to shape and shift cultural tourism to experiential tourism, that is, to combine experiential experiences with culture to make it more attractive and understandable. Even the “mass” tourist who comes for sun and sea will practice cultural tourism, taking part in the life and culture of a place. All of this, if properly organised and structured, can be an attraction, especially in the Region, where we suffer both from seasonality and lack of popularity.
Kikilia speaking on the sidelines of the conference: «Lemnos and Cultural Tourism: a special look at the development prospects of the alternative category of tourism for Lemnos, the North Aegean and Greece» held in Lemnos, said that the trend nowadays for the visitor is to experience the culture, tradition and history of each place. According to Kikilia, «in order to organise this properly, it must start institutionally, from the state, and end with the local government and the entrepreneur. Actions should be organised at a broader level according to local elements, products and services and should be adapted to each region, to each place in the smallest village, so that they become a pole of attraction. Among these actions, which we have already begun to see in our country, are, for example, courses in local dance and music combined with tasting of local products, etc. These are actions through which the visitor becomes part of the tradition and life of a destination.
It is noted that the conference was organized by the Association «Friends of ANZAC from Lemnos», under the auspices of the Ministries of Culture, Shipping and Island Policy, and Tourism, the Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO), the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels and the Association of Hoteliers of Lemnos.
Nicole Kazantzidou
