The Sympossio Greek Gourmet Touring, Aldemar Resorts’ culinary project promoting Greek gastronomy abroad for the last decade, marked its commencement on Thursday, January 16th with a glamorous event held at the Domotel Kastri Hotel.
At the opening event, representatives of the tourism industry, renowned entrepreneurs and all those who support Sympossio, were afforded the opportunity to celebrate the value of synergies and the never-ending possibilities of Greek gastronomy and Greek Tourism.
The hosts, Mr. Alexandros Angelopoulos, CEO of Aldemar Resorts and Konstantinos Alexopoulos, CEO of Domotel Hotels & Resorts, celebrated the beginning of Sympossio’s 11th journey. Given the initiative’s ten-year successful presence in over 67 cities and 19 countries in Eastern and Western Europe, this year marks the beginning of a very promising new decade.
The Sympossio Greek Gourmet Touring project, having succeeded in creating one of the strongest, long-lasting synergies between the private and the public sector, with a common goal of promoting Greek products, flavors and regions abroad, presented the 11th year theme, essentially a tribute to “Greek cheese”. Greek cheeses, with a history that dates back to Homer’s era and more specifically to the “Odyssey”, constitute an exceptional raw material that is widely used in both the domestic and international cuisine. This year’s theme aims at highlighting the value and variety of Greek cheeses, one of the main exporting products of our country.
Ms. Katerina Gagaki welcomed guests from various sectors such as politics, tourism, and business, as well as journalists and celebrities. The event was graced by the presence of the Minister of Tourism, Mr. Haris Theocharis, the President of the Hellenic Hoteliers Federation Mr. Grigoris Tassios, the President of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels Alexandros Vassilikos, the Managing Director of the Athens Medical Group and President of the Hellenic Entrepreneurs Association, Dr. Vassilis Apostolopoulos and the Ambassador of Ukraine, Sergii Shutenko, among others.
The evening begun with the welcoming speech of Sympossio’s conceptualist Mr. Alexandros Angelopoulos, who stated: “Sympossio could not have been realized if it was not for the valuable contribution of all its stakeholders. The project isn’t dependent on financial contributions as each partner, contributor and sponsor participates in Sympossio providing any resources they can offer”.
The Minister of Tourism, Mr. Haris Theocharis, one of the evenings’ honored guests took to the floor, stating: “Greek Gastronomy should not be considered an insignificant element of the Greek tourism industry but instead, should be lauded as one of its leading components. Our outstanding Greek cuisine can become a significant attraction for tourists, but it can also complement and further enhance the hospitality that Greece promises and offers”.
The governor of Western Greece, Mr. Nektarios Pharmakis when it came to his turn to speak stated that “Our participation in the 11th Sympossio Greek Gourmet Touring dedicated to Greek Cheese offers yet another opportunity to highlight the premium quality of the cheeses produced in Western Greece and to support the value of Greek gastronomy for both the touristic landscape and the wider economic development of our country”.
Mr. Pierre-Emmanuel Duband, AEGEAN’s International Sales Manager who has been a Strategic Partner of Sympossio for many years, said: “I’m very happy to be here tonight at the opening event of Sympossio 2020, as I believe that everyone present – Aldemar Resorts, AEGEAN and all of Sympossio’s partners – share the same goal, that is, to promote the best version of Greece abroad. AEGEAN, with its discerning values, professionalism, high quality and dedication to providing excellent services, stands next to Sympossio for yet another year and wishes good luck in its 11th year”.
Mr. Panagiotis Nikas, the governor of Peloponnese, expressed his firm support for this initiative: “As Peloponnese is a region known for the quality of its agricultural products, I have made it a strategic goal to promote them even further, aiming at enhancing their recognizability and popularity in foreign markets. This strategy is completely in line with the goals that Sympossio originally set and served. It is an excellent initiative on the part of Aldemar Resorts”.
The governor of Crete Mr. Stavros Arnaoutakis, supporting this gastronomical project for yet another year, underlined: “The Region of Crete continues to implement its innovative strategic approach to promote the island by reintroducing it as a unique gastronomical destination. With this in mind, Sympossio Greek Gourmet Touring augments our own initiatives to promote Cretan gastronomy and Cretan culture abroad”.
The host of the evening Mr. Konstantinos Alexopoulos, Managing Director of the Domotel Hotels & Resorts Group, welcomed the guests at Domotel Kastri, stressing: “Domotel Hotels & Resorts is pleased and honored to be a part of this initiative. Greek tourism is much more than sun and sea. Greek gastronomy goes hand in hand with our cultural evolution and variety. The provision of a holistic experience for our visitors is our competitive advantage and the core of our destination’s identity. Domotel Hotels & Resorts with its leading and widespread presence in the Greek mainland teamed up with Aldemar Resorts, an historic Greek hotel chain, in order to promote this idea overseas. Wishing you all the best for your new journey, Sympossio 2020″.
During the event all the guests had the opportunity to taste unique Greek products, especially the “star of the evening” greek cheese, as well as the delicious menu of this year’s Sympossio which bore the signature of the Executive Chefs of the Aldemar Resorts. The talented musician Stefanos Kokkalis was there to entertain the guests, enchanting them with his beautiful melodies on the piano.
Warmest thanks to all our valuable partners and sponsors of Sympossio 2020 for passionately supporting and actively participating in this gastronomical project. More specifically:
- Our strategic partners, AEGEAN, the Region of Crete, the Region of Peloponnese, the Region of Western Greece
- GNTO, the Hellenic Hoteliers Federation and the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels, as the “Sympossio” is organized under their auspices
- Our major collaborator, Domotel Hotels & Resorts
- Our partners St. George Lycabettus Lifestyle Hotel, 3Sixty Hotel and Suites, Kirimai Hotel, Unilever Food Solutions, Win to Win
Our sponsors MEVGAL, Cretan rusks “to Manna”, Lelia-Esti, Rodoula Dough Products, NISOS Beer, ILIOS Pasta, Nikos Gavalas Winery, Vogiatzis Estate, Papagiannakopoulos Winery, Cavino, Lux, Karakanas Creamery, Epsa, Ella-dika mas, Zealots Οf Nature and Heteroclito Wine Bar
- Our communications sponsors KSD/Money & Tourism, naftemporiki.gr, news247, Protagon, Botanistas, olive, olivemagazine.gr.
