ATHENS – The Coordinating Center for Tourism China-Central and Eastern European countries (CEE) of the 14+1 Initiative has announced this year’s Marco Polo Tourism Awards, in which Greek tourism received two important distinctions.

More specifically, the Greek National Tourist Organisation (GNTO) Office in Beijing was honoured with the “National and Regional Tourism Organization” award, while the Traces of Greece travel agency, which is under the auspices of the Ministry of Tourism, was awarded in the “Travel Agencies/Travel Agents” category.

The participation of Greece in the 14+1 Initiative for tourism matters is another action of the Ministry of Tourism and the GNTO with a strategic focus on the Chinese market. The tourism ministry is ready with a strategy and action plan for the China market, which are constantly adjusted according to the current conditions, proving once again that China is still an important target market for Greek tourism.

Regarding the award of the GNTO service in Beijing, Secretary General Dimitris Fragakis said: “The GNTO office in China is getting an important award that highlights the Greek tourist services and the value of the Greek tourist product in the large and important market of China. I want to congratulate the director of our service in Beijing, Yannis Plexousakis, as well as all his colleagues and I recognise that their work was very difficult in the very unfavourable conditions of the pandemic. The GNTO offices abroad are staffed by excellent professionals who do very important work for the promotion of Greek tourism.”

The Marco Polo Tourism Awards aim to recognise and highlight the initiatives and contributions of organisations and businesses actively involved in developing the best tourism product for the Chinese market.