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In a meeting organized by the Greece’s Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and representatives of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE) and other tourism professionals the Greek government and the tourism professionals are realizing the importance of tourism for improving the country’s economy.

The tourism industry will play a vital role in improving the countries tourism so the government has decided to put a greater thrust on this industry. In 2013 Greece welcomed 17.8 million arrivals and registered an all-time record in revenues of 12.5 billion euros.

Speaking to the press the Greek Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni said 2013 was a very good year for Greek tourism and that next year she anticipates an even better season. The initial messages for 2014 are positive and encourage that Greece should expect more revenue and jobs, which will give a boost to the country’s economy.

E also added that since last year Greece regained its credibility in the global tourism market and changed its image abroad in addition to the great success in terms of arrivals and revenue. He said that the government is laying more emphasis on tourism and is trying to attract investment by enriching tourism products and with new products like medical and religious tourism. He is quite sure that with these positive endeavors Greek tourism will find its place in the global tourism market.

Greece can see a record year in tourism this year if the political stability is maintained felt the president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises, Andreas Andreadis. In 2014, Mr. Andreadis expects arrivals to surpass 18.5 million, direct revenue to add up to 13 billion euros and 50,000 jobs to be created. He said the main target is for Greece to attract 24 million arrivals by 2021 along with 48 billion euros in total revenue and 300,000 jobs.

2014 is expected to be a better year for Greek Tourism said president of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels, Yiorgos Tsakiris if political condition of the country is stable.

During the meeting, Mr. Tsakiris suggested the further improvement of the Greek tourism product with actions on the standards of medical tourism and the Greek Breakfast initiative. He also underlined the importance of upgrading the country’s hotel services, defining a new development model for tourism and he also stressed the need for further resources to be invested in Greece’s tourism promotion.

The Labor Minister Yiannis Vroutsis said the increase in tourism in 2014 would boost unemployment while Culture Minister Panos Panagiotopoulos announced the Culture Ministry’s intention to extend the hours of 30 of Greece’s most visited archaeological sites and museums from 8am to 8pm.