Argophilia

Αργοφιλία: For the love of the journey.

Eastern Europe

Day Four of Five in Athens: Life is A Prayer

Phil Butler

Two days of the Digi.travel EMEA Conference & Expo in Athens delivered their business promise to those who attended, and to those of us presenting. Friends and colleagues, old and new, were ready to embark along their separate paths, but for us exploring the streets of Plaka, and listening to the echoes of eternity, the message was in […]

TripAdvisor: Greece Popularity On Upswing

Aleksandr Shatskih

According to Anna Rufo, head of display sales at TripAdvisor, more people now use the world famous review site to book their vacations to Greece, than ever.

Business in Athens: Day One of Five

Phil Butler

The first increment of a reflection on a five-day business excursion to the masterpiece, the legend, the reality of one of the oldest cities on Earth, wonderful Athens, Greece. Here’s what business is like in Greece’s capital.

A Photogenic Look at Russia’s “Red City” – Yoshkar-Ola

Phil Butler

Argophilia has always been about discovery, and for imparting news about the people and places of Eastern Europe westerners probably only imagined. Nothing gives us more pleasure than sharing wonderful discoveries, and in keeping with this I’d like to present one of my own. Yoshkar-Ola is an obscure (in English langauge) Russian city of incomparable beauty. This town of a quarter of a million souls is yet another hidden gem of culture, beauty, and fascinating citizens.

TUI Russia Gets Cash Infusion

Aleksandr Shatskih

In news from TUI in Russia, TUI Group announced last Friday announced having entered into an agreement to provide new shareholder funding in TUI Russia & CIS, via a joint venture with SeverGroup. Both TUI and SeverGroup will provide new shareholder loans in line with their equity participation ratios, which are 25% and 75%, respectively.

Digi.travel Cyprus Kicks Off in Nicosia

Phil Butler

Today the Digi.travel Cyprus Conference & Expo kicks off from the Filoxenia Conference Centre in Nicosia. Organized for the first time, in co-operation with the Association of Cyprus Travel Agents, this session puts technology providers alongside travel and hospitality professionals for networking, business intelligence, and problem-solving. Argophilia Travel News reports from Cyprus.

The Russia You Never Dreamed Of

Phil Butler

Depending on where you find your information, Mother Russia is either a thriving potential set to unleash vast riches for her people, or a decaying remnant of a Soviet Past. Since a few years I’ve felt it my job to show all the best of this often enigmatic place. After the hundreds of hours with […]

Italy Entrepreneurs Eye Crimea Developments

Phil Butler

In news from Crimea, authorities there have invited Italian entrepreneurs visiting the peninsula to invest in a marina development. The project, in the Crimean town of Balaklava, is focused on farming oysters and additional urban planning for the region.

Crimea for Vacation: Beyond CNN and the Political Stir

Phil Butler

CNN and other mainstream media need westerners to feel like geo-policy has somehow ruined the Crimea peninsula for tourism. Since voting to return to being Russian, the people of this fascinating part of the world have weathered a political blitz, sanctions, and outsiders doing everything possible to misrepresent the reality there. Here is a candid […]