Introduction
Greece is a very picturesque and exciting place to be. The vast amount of islands allow everyone to enjoy a different aspect of the country; suggesting why it is a perfect place to hold a festival. Greece attracts many tourists each year, especially during the summer months, to places such as Athens, Santorini, and Mykonos because of its rich history and culture. Many tourists are interested in the historical elements that enable them to obtain a “symbolic connection to Western Civilisation” (Galani-Moutafi, 2004, 170). There have been many advancements to the Athens metropolitan area; allowing visitors to have more access to the city and improve the overall experience involving travel and commuting. (Rabe et al., 2018).
Greece has many landmarks and opportunities to sight-see which could be a catalyst for visitors to travel to Greece, it’s “distinctive architecture (Deffner et al., 2022), create both an immersive experience and a chance to learn about the history and culture of Greece.
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Mobilities and the Experience Economy
The concept of mobilities refers to the movement of people, goods, and resources around the world (Hannah, Sheller & Urry, 2006: 1). It allows countries to be interconnected by using everyday transportation methods and distribute supplies, including capital (Hannah, Sheller & Urry, 2006: 1). In relation to travel and tourism, interdependence mobilities such as corporate travel and virtual travel, all commonly involve materials and bodily travel through either media and technology or geographical distance, (Elliot & Urry, 2010: 15-16). This implies the ease of mobilities is improving constantly, allowing travel and connections between countries to be more accessible. The experience economy moves from materials, goods, and objects to buying experiences and creating moments (Pine and Gilmore, 2011). Experiences provided have been developed to provide luxury and unforgettable moments for customers.
Website Aim
To present Greece as a suitable destination for a large cultural festival.
To showcase it’s own heritage and history, providing an informative and educational experience for both domestic and international tourists.
To promote the vibrant and historical culture inspiring a multipurpose trip.
Characteristics of the country from the viewpoint of tourism and events
Architectural Legacy (Lew, Hall & Timothy, 2008)
Many people believed in the power of Greek gods so designed and built large temples in their name. Religious buildings, such as the Acropolis, an ancient citadel, embodies the richest achievements of architecture (Tolqin, 2021). “Ancient theatres are consistently represented among the exhibits of Greek pavilions.” (Martha & Kotsaki, 2014, 575). This suggests historical monuments and theatres have become idolised, presenting their value in the modern world.
“Ancient architecture combined with cultural events has been one of the major elements of tourism policy.” (Martha & Kotsaki, 2014, 573)
Island Hopping (UNWTO, 2022)
Various ferry lines travel to specific island groups, allowing consumers to travel between islands (LonelyPlanet 2023). During the winter season some ferry lines stop working, due to the closure of restaurants and hotels; therefore impacting visitors’ arrival to the event. Compared to the summer season, when there are masses of holiday-makers wanting to explore Greece (LonelyPlanet 2023).
Endless Coastline (LonelyPlanet, 2020)
This video is embedded within the website because it portrays Greece as a relaxing but exciting place filled with many activities, especially involving the sea and coast. This makes it unique because of its endless coastline and accessibility for both people and resources.
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Characteristics of international travel flows
Since the 1990’s, the majority of arrivals in Greece come from Europe. There are many tourists that come for overnight stays in Greece equaling 31,348,000 in 2019, however, that figure has significantly dropped since the Covid Pandemic to 14,705,000 overnight visitors in 2021. The Pandemic affected how popular the visitor economy was, however, is gradually recovering (UNWTO, 2022).
Figure 2 presents that 89.98% of arrivals came from Europe in 2019, followed by Americas with 5.9% and East Asia and the Pacific with 3.81%. Even after the pandemic, this pattern hasn’t changed. Europe is still the highest region of origin for most tourists with now 94.28%, an increase of 4.8% in 2021. The level of tourists from America and East Asia has decreased. This could be because of the distance and barriers of COVID, including vaccine passports and travelling across borders (UNWTO, 2023).
In 1995, 91% of visitors came for leisure, and 9% came for business purposes (UNWTO, 2023).
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Domestic Tourism
In Greece, there are high levels of domestic tourism with 2,350,700 people traveling, because of the variety of lifestyles across the country, island hopping is prominent , which also makes it convenient for tourists to move across the islands. The level of domestic visitors is much lower in comparison, equaling at 444,800 visitors in 2020 (UNWTO, 2022).
Key features of domestic tourism include flight rules especially at certain times of the year (Fragoudaki & Giokas, 2016). Event tourism and staycations have grown in popularity, as recessions or global threats prose a risk to tourists.
As Greece is located on the coast, arriving by ferry may be popular, however in recent years traveling to Greece by water has declined, and traveling by air is the most popular, as in figure 5, 79.1% of visitors traveled by plane in 2021 (UNWTO, 2022).
Airports
There are many airports located in mainland Greece, as well as on smaller islands such as Lemnos, Skyros and Santorini. This makes travelling more convenient, meaning a direct flight can be organised rather than ongoing transportation to a destination (Fragoudaki & Giokas, 2016).
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Natural Attractions:
Strofilia the pines extravagance (Visit Greece, 2022)
This attraction is located in the northern-western part of the Peloponnese in the Strofylia forest; a nature reserve consisting of a thin strip of pine trees. This produces a unique ecosystem and homes many animals such as tortoises, fish and all kinds of birds (Visit Greece, 2023).
Thasos, Emerald Island (Visit Greece, 2022)
This is a completely natural and graceful attraction. There are rock shaped steps leading into the water which accommodate the many sea activities advertised here, such as snorkelling and scuba diving (Visit Greece, 2023). This is an adventurous place, which is popular with tourists.
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Cultural Attractions:
Archaeological Site of Delphi (UNESCO, World Heritage Convention, 2022)
The site of Delphi lies between 2 towering rocks, known as the Phaidriades rocks. Viewing this ancient site is seen to be a magical experience (UNESCO, World Heritage Convention, 2022). The manmade element entwined with the raw natural environment; represents the Ancient World. By myth, it was said to be the meeting point for two eagles released by Zeus (UNESCO, World Heritage Convention, 2022).
The Greek Schubert (Visit Greece, 2022)
The Greek Schubert is a national opera house, representing happiness and harmony within the community. This resonates with many people from Greece as powerful musicians and composers performed their music here. Franz Schubert often performed songs on Greek history, Gods and mythology (Visit Greece, 2022).
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Key Events:
EUREKA: Science, Art, Technology of Ancient Greeks (Visit Greece, 2022)
This exhibition involves individuals seeing achievements in Greek technology and techniques and is hosted in the Herakleidon Museum (Visit Greece, 2023). Thematic sections showcase the impressive works and collections of Ancient Greek technology. This attracts thousands of tourists, making it a popular exhibition in Greece. Visitors go “through more than 28 centuries of history, knowledge, culture and human skills” (Visit Greece, 2023).
Rockwave Festival (LonelyPlanet, 2022)
This festival is held in Athens, in July. Many top singers have performed here since 1996; the music mainly consists of hard rock and heavy metal. Previous festival acts include Prodigy and Arctic Monkeys, who are extremely well known. This could be an incentive for many tourists. Buses run from the centre of Athens to the festival (LonelyPlanet, 2022).
Athens Epidaurus Festival (LonelyPlanet, 2022)
The two sites used for this festival include, The slopes of Acropolis and an Ancient Theatre in the Peloponnese. Visitors are able to see live performances of drama, dance and music (LonelyPlanet, 2022). Tourists can also visit nearby events at a similar time, enhancing their experience in Athens.
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Case Study: The 2004 Oylmpic Games in Athens
The games allowed Greece to gain national confidence when organising major international events, helping Greece acquire recognition for Greek Success from international visitors. This enabled them to act creatively when building new infrastructure, enhancing Athens, the chosen destination (Georgiadis & Theodorikakos, 2016). The stadium's reconstruction was inspired by the designs of Santiago Calatrava, a Spanish architect, which created a new symbol for Athens (Georgiadis & Theodorikakos, 2016).
This event was selected because of the significant reputation it brought to the city, acting as a catalyst for the modernisation of Greece. When the Olympics was first held in Greece the airline industry was created to be more efficient (Simons, 2019, 92). The ease of travelling to Greece, allowed the country to maximise on the visitor economy when mega - events were held, leading to 5.3 million tickets being sold (Abrahamson, 2004).
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Evaluation
Strengths
There are many strengths for holding a cultural festival in Greece; one of them is the warmer climate (Boniface, Cooper & Cooper, 2021). This could entice visitors to the festival, and give them the opportunity to explore the country. There are also great transport links, such as bus and trains routes within Greece. This gives guests freedom for travelling and event transportation. Furthermore, the elements of heritage in Greece and the large amount of historical monuments give the visitors the opportunity to learn about Greece’s history (Galani-Moutafi, 2004). Viewing ancient sites allows them to gain knowledge of the origins of Greece, such as the opens theatres (Martha & Kotsaki, 2014). The festivals held there are mainly music, art or drama based, which means Greece continues the traditions of their country. Also, the vibrant culture engages tourists in music, food and activities (Lonelyplanet, 2022). This means it will act as the perfect setting for the large cultural festival. Greece can emphasis the festival feeling as soon as guests arrive, elongating and adding to their experience.
Weaknesses
However, there are some weaknesses for choosing the destination of Greece. Firstly, the social and economical recession could arise certain feelings from visitors (Mohamed-Brahmi, Et al. 2022), as they may be worried about any unsettling changes happening in the country. Also, as Greece is geographically isolated (Mohamed-Brahmi, Et al. 2022), it may be difficult to transport goods across mainland Greece, due to the vast mountains, which may cause problems when sourcing items for large events. This may affect the guests experience. Moreover, the amount of pollution in the Mediterranean Sea, could detract from the natural and cultural attractions, which could affect the picturesque scenery (Boniface, Cooper, & Cooper, 2021).
Opportunities
Hosting a cultural festival in Greece, brings many opportunities. Firstly, the event would entice thousands of people to the festival, boosting the organiser’s profit. It is also a popular destination for permanent retirement migration (Lew, Hall, & Timothy, 2008). This means older people attending the festival, would be able to embrace the culture of their new home and connect with others in a similar position. This could benefit the organisers as they could advertise this feature within communities. The strong cultural element of the festival links well with the traditions of Greece, leading to future events and opportunities.
Threats
Some threats could include the economic crisis indicators, this could mean people are reluctant to travel to Greece because of the economic or social climate. Also, if the festival is held in the summer, overcrowding could occur, making it hard for Greece to manage crowds without creating stressful situations. Moreover, there have been attacks on Civil Society in Greece (World Report, Human Rights Report, 2021), so there is always a risk of this happening again in the future.
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Recommendations
The first recommendation would be to hold the festival in Athens as traditionally it would be a place to celebrate the Greek heritage and power of the Gods. As it is a cultural festival, it would be entwined with the Greek culture and traditions. This would be a celebration event with a focus on the destination of Greece.
Another recommendation would be to host the event in early May or late September, meaning the event will avoid disruptions from the busy holiday season. Transportation links would be quieter so the event would be easily accessible. Due to the festival, roads could be closed and more traffic is likely, so avoiding mid-summer would be strategic.
The three most popular destinations in Greece are Santorini, Mykonos and Naxos which are all considered good for island hopping as they are located in the centre of the smaller islands in Greece, it would be easy to arrive by boat and this could be a selling point for guests, making it a unique experience. Many strategies have evolved to cope with lots of tourists at one time, which suggests these islands are a good setting to hold a festival.
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Conclusion
Overall, Greece would be an amazing place to hold a festival, especially in the city of Athens. The accessibility links to the capital, will mean transporting materials and guests to the venue would come with ease. Also, the historical and cultural identity Athens holds, seems to align with the goals of the festival being planned; creating a meaningful and celebratory event.
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References
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Credits:
Created with images by Samuele Gallini - "Shipwreck Beach isola di Zante" • Gorilla - "Santorini, Greece - Oia, sunrise, panorama " • efesenko - "The colorful buildings in Vasileos Konstantinou street, Nafplio, Greece" • Leonid Andronov - "Monastery of Roussanou at Meteora in Greece" • Holger - "The acropolis, the most famous citadel in the world on the hills of Athens, Greece, Europe. One of the most visited travel destinations. Captured in the morning with less people around." • allouphoto - "Corfu town centre esplanades and market" • Iraklis Milas - "The ancient theater of Epidaurus (Epidavros), Argolida (Argolis), Peloponnese, Greece. It is considered the ancient theater with the best acoustics. " • Stoyan Haytov - "Ancient Roman Arch of Galerius in Thessaloniki, Greece" • pillerss - "Mykonos. Fishing boats in the bay." • Leszek Czerwonka - "Aerial view of sandy beach with sunbathing tourists and clear turquoise sea" • dudlajzov - "Sunset view of Athenian treasury at the ancient delphi site in Greece" • MZaitsev - "Top-down aerial view of a clean white sandy beach on the shores of a beautiful turquoise sea. Greece."