Filenews 12 August 2022 - by Dora Christodoulou
The redefinition of tourism in Cyprus, mainly in the new realities created by the two years of the pandemic, has a twofold goal for the Deputy Ministry of Tourism: On the one hand, to adequately explain to the rural world, mainly, what is changing in tourism internationally and on the other hand to analyze what exactly the Deputy Ministry is doing to be ready in these new conditions that created a pandemic and war in Ukraine to support tourism in our country all year round, but also offering services now for special forms of tourism.
This was stressed, speaking to the residents of the area of Polemi, in the semi-mountainous Pafos, the Deputy Minister of Tourism during a rally held for this purpose.
"These meetings in rural areas nationwide", Savvas Perdios stressed speaking to "F", "are also a good opportunity for local authorities and rural people to hear about the 15 total grant projects offered by the deputy ministry during these four years and which in total will offer about €75 million, both from European funds, as well as from the ordinary budget of the Deputy Ministry. It is very important for everyone to show interest, because these designs will contribute greatly to the further improvement of our product".
The Deputy Minister for Tourism expressed his satisfaction for the effective response shown by Cypriot tourism in the midst of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine and pointed out that the satisfactory results we are seeing today are the product of collective work and not only the work of the Deputy Ministry of Tourism: "It is very important that all actors come together through the National Tourism Strategy. We all know what the goals are by the end of the 10-year period, we all now know how we will reach those goals and what you see this year is none other than the result of hard work by all of us over the last three years. This year's good results are the product of this three-year hard work to get new markets, such as France, to bring back markets that have been limited for a while, such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Scandinavia."
Referring to the wave of arrivals from Britain, Savvas Perdios told "F" that the UK is doing very well in the tourism sector, describing it as a "pillar" of Cypriot tourism. "It's not enough just Britain though," he said, "we need the rest of the markets and it's something we've achieved satisfactorily this year."
For the continuation of the efforts to penetrate new markets, the Deputy Minister of Tourism observed that it is very important to continue this effort and referred to France which he described as a huge market and Poland, which he identified as a "rising market" for Cyprus. "In general, I would say, we believe a lot in the countries of eastern Europe," he said, "since we see the Czech Republic and Hungary developing a dynamic. At the same time, however, markets that should already have been possible in Cyprus, such as Austria, Germany and Scandinavia, had to be strengthened. These countries were strong presences in Cyprus before, but somewhere we probably lost them because we gave too much importance to the 'sun and sea'. With our new targeting and the repositioning of the product on a modern basis, I think we will be able to bring them back to us." Mr. Perdios revealed that in the near future Cyprus will try to enter the large Saudi market in a dynamic way.
Emphasis on open space activities
Asked by "F" to refer to the types of specialized tourism services that he considers should have priority, the Deputy Minister of Tourism said that through the programs of grants that have been prepared, special emphasis is given to wine gastronomy, cycling tourism, religious and conference tourism.
"Of particular importance is now the authentic experiences through visits to the villages", he stressed, "while with the new plans that come out in the near future, medical tourism is also at our centre. We believe that Cyprus can excel in this part due to our excellent climate. It is also nautical tourism, due to the marinas that are being created. In general, I would now say that Cyprus has the potential to achieve many things in terms of open space activities, having both its excellent weather and its exquisite nature, which allows us to work on our transformation into a permanently all-year-round tourist destination".
Two more plans are coming up
In addition to the 15 grant plans that already exist, Savvas Perdios announced that two more are coming: The one that will be implemented in September, he said, will concern entirely the mountainous and border areas and will be a plan that will have to do with the upgrades of hotels and tourist accommodation. "The latest plan that will come out at the end of the year," he said, "will be addressed to hotels all over Cyprus and will provide incentives for their spaces to be converted into places of health, wellness, medical tourism and assisted living."
