The participation of the municipality of Ioannita in the International Tourism Exhibition “Travel Expo” in Cyprus was successful

A delegation of the Municipality of Ioannina visited Cyprus between April 18-22, 2024, in the context of the International Tourism Exhibition “Travel Expo”. The Municipality of Ioannina participated in this particular Exhibition at the stand of the Region of Epirus at the EOT stand. The delegation was headed by the Vice-Regional Mayor for Culture, Ilias Gartzonikas and the Director of the Tourism Department, Iulia Markoulas, while the Municipality of Ioannina was represented by the Deputy Mayor of Trade, Development, Entrepreneurship and Tourism, Christos Tatsis, the Deputy Mayor of Culture, Cultural Institutions and Events, Minas Paschopoulos, the General Secretary of the Municipality, Konstantinos Babasikas and the Mayor’s Special Advisor on City Diplomacy, Tourism & Business Development, Stefanos Zervas.

The objectives of the delegation of the Municipality of Ioannina were: a) the attempt to reconnect Larnaca – Ioannina by air, b) the further penetration – promotion of the new enriched Tourist Product of the Destination “Ioannina”, c) the strengthening-development of the presence of Ioannina in areas of Diplomacy of Cities, Tourism & Culture with the twinned cities of Ayia Napa and Limassol and d) the claim – joint participation of the Municipality of Ioannita in European Programs & Projects with the Municipalities of Limassol, Ayia Napa as well as Academic – Educational and Business Organizations.

For this reason, there were planned B2B meetings of the delegation both at the Exhibition and outside the Exhibition, with top government officials of Cyprus, such as with the Deputy Minister of Tourism of Cyprus, Mr. Costas Koumis, who is in fact a warm supporter of the Ioannina destination and participated in the 1^the flight that took place from Larnaca to Ioannina with the TUS company in 2017, with General Managers of the Ministry of Tourism & Education of Cyprus, with the Director of Development, Marketing and Communication of Larnaca Airport Ms. Maria Kouroupis, Mr. Petros Sagana, Head of Service EOT of Cyprus, with large T.O. and Tourist Offices of Cyprus.

Planned meetings were also held with the Mayor of Limassol Mr. Nikolaidis and his colleagues Mr. Neophytos Charalambidis (Deputy Mayor) and Kostas Giallouros (Board), as well as with the Mayor of Agia Napa Mr. Christos Zanettou, on matters of upgrading the cooperation between the twinned Municipalities, the Networking of Cities and the exchange and adoption of good practices.

The results of the meetings are evaluated with a particularly positive sign because the interest of the Cypriot market for the destination “Ioannina” and the wider region of Epirus turned out to be very high, which was clearly seen due to the greater traffic compared to the other EOT stands that had the Epirus stand at the Fair.

In addition to the targeted meetings that took place, there was a very positive response, interest and intention to launch important supporting tools and initiatives that will contribute to the further development of the interconnection of Cyprus with our region.

On behalf of the Municipality of Ioannina, the employees of the Department of Tourism Mr. E. Basogiannis (Head) and Mr. Aim. Young people who made their presence felt and contributed to the maximum in order to promote the best possible image of the destination to the numerous visitors.