XENIA 2021: EDUCATION, COORDINATION AND COOPERATION KEY TO MAKING GREEK HOSPITALITY SUSTAINABLE
Education, synergies, and coordination are the only options Greek tourism stakeholders have if they want to be ahead of their game and meet sustainability targets in the coming years, according to a panel discussion held at the Xenia 2021 hospitality expo over the weekend live for the first time after the outbreak of Covid-19.
Sustainability and ways hoteliers can start making their businesses friendlier to the environment and remain viable was addressed during a panel discussion titled “Sustainability as a Key Marketing Tool for Hotels” within the “Xenia Digi Hotel” series.
“Sustainability is here to stay,” Pappas said, stressing the importance of formulating a new tourism model that will not only integrate sustainable practices into hospitality but widescale and across the tourist experience.
Representing the hospitality industry, Angelopoulos said “practising” sustainable development was part of an “ever-evolving process that incorporates what already exists but re-adapts it” to meet the changing times and demands. One step in the right direction is the relatively current launch of the Bike Friendly Hotels initiative by Karantzavelou. Some 130 hotels in Greece, 10 municipalities and 30 partners have already received certification and more are in line.
Sustainable products offer visitors the chance to experience more, said Angelopoulos, adding that hotels can be at the frontline but this can only be achieved by working together.