There were no empty seats when the Hospitality Investment Real Estate event started in Hotel Barrière Le Majestic Cannes on the 14th of March, a special event hosted by Hospitality ON.
Enterprise Greece presented new and unknown opportunities for international investors around the world, focusing on the economic growth by 1.4% in 2017 and by 2.1% in the first three quarters of 2018, as well as the exports of goods increasing to a new record in 2018, reaching 33.41 billion euros.
Let’s forget about the crisis, since it has become almost a cliché and let’s find Greece in the spotlight. That was mainly the message. Not only because the building activity is showing signs of recovery, but also because there are major strategic investments underway. Such as the privatization of Piraeus port, with a 1.5 billion investment deal (Cosco), the privatization of Thessaloniki Port and 10 other ports in the country.
Greece is also becoming an energy hub. During the Hospitality ON event, representatives from Enterprise Greece, talked about Astir Palace in Vouliagmeni being transformed into the first Four Seasons Hotel in Greece, as the prospects for the high-end tourism market are inexhaustible. There will also be an investment on the island of Kea, known as Tzia, from One&Only Resorts, with a hotel, a spa, three restaurants, two bars and a beach club.
But the biggest real estate regeneration project in the country, estimated to bring 8 billion euros upon full deployment, is turning the former airport of Athens, into a diverse range of residential communities, as well as hotels, shopping centers, museums and cultural venues, a business and metropolitan park, in a total area of 6.2 million square meters since the former Athens airport is three times more than the size of Monaco.
Tourism is a big force in the Greek economy with Athens and Greece among the best worldwide destinations and welcoming places in the world, more than 32 million visitors and 16 billion euros in receipts from tourists, just in 2018. And there are still unexploited areas and a need for product improvement, branded hotels, extension of seasonality, wellness and health tourism in 16.000 kilometers of coastline and 6000 islands and islets. Rebranding Greece. Rebranding moussaka. Rebranding mythology.
By Sandy Tsantaki
