The Korean side showed interest in launching a seasonal Athens–Seoul flight with Korean Air, combined with travel packages for high-income tourists. This was discussed with Tourism Minister Olga Kefalogianni, who on the second day of her visit to South Korea, accompanied by the President of the Greek National Tourism Organization, Angela Varella, held meetings with key representatives of the country’s tourism market.
Olga Kefalogianni, who on the second day of her visit to South Korea, accompanied by the president of the Greek Tourism Organization, Ms. Angela Varela, held meetings with important representatives of the country’s tourism market.
Ms. Kefalogianni met with the vice presidents of Korean Air, Mr. Kwangho Ko and Mr. Seunghyeok Lee, as well as with the General Manager, Mr. Hoon Jun. This was followed by a meeting with the President of Hanjin Tour, Mr. Janghoon Lee, and the Vice President, Mr. Minsoo Kim, and immediately afterwards, with the Director of Lotte Tour for Europe and America, Mr. Byung-in Lim.
Ms. Kefalogianni emphasized the fact that South Korea is a select target market for Greece. She presented to her interlocutors the impressive growth of Greek tourism in combination with tourism revenue levels, as well as the strategy for developing new forms of tourism in terms of sustainability that fully meet Korea’s tourism demand.
She stressed that conditions are now ripe for the development of tourist traffic between the two countries, provided there is a direct air link, given that our country, apart from the authentic experiences it offers its visitors, is an ideal gateway to European markets.
For their part, the representatives of these important companies emphasized their interest in Greece, noting that they target high-profile visitors with quality 10-day tourist packages in cooperation with Korean Air through seasonal tourist flights.
Both the representatives of Korean Air and the tourism organizations with which the Minister of Tourism and the President of the Greek National Tourism Organization met agree on the need for a direct Seoul-Athens flight connection. In particular, Korean Air representatives stated that they are now focusing more on the European market and will examine all possibilities.
The Minister of Tourism assured her interlocutors that the Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourism Organization will contribute with targeted actions to strengthen demand from Korea for Greek destinations in order to create the right climate for a direct air connection between the two countries.
