About the Event
Greece and its island archipelago are one of the world's most compelling cruise tourism destinations, with a strong and vibrant tradition in cruise and passenger shipping.
Europe will attract a 15% increase in cruise capacity in 2008, with the Mediterranean showing exceptional growth. Yet the number of cruise calls which Greece now attracts, and the benefits accruing to the Greek economy from cruise tourism, fall well short of its massive potential, and its great success as a land based tourism destination.
The latest European Cruise Council study on cruise tourism in Europe reports that of the top 16 Mediterranean ports of call, not one is in Greece.
So what needs to be done to create the right circumstances to accelerate the growth of cruise calls in Greek ports, and to achieve the diversity of itineraries and destination experiences that this region has to offer in such abundance?
This Seatrade Cruise Forum will bring together all the stake holders in the business, ports and destinations, ground handlers and port agents, ship suppliers, travel industry professionals and tourism organisations as well as senior representatives from many of the world's leading cruise brands.
The conference will hear from cruise line experts on what they want to see from Greece as a destination in terms of infrastructure, shore excursion options, pre and post packages, air lift, regulatory environment, cost structures etc, as well as Greece's own potential as a source market for cruise passengers.
The programme will also include contributions from the leading Greek institutions involved in growing the business, including the Hellenic Association of Travel and Tourism Agencies (HATTA) and the Greek National Tourism Organisation on the kinds of strategies they believe are needed to grow the business.