A meeting in Crete this past week headed by the island’s Governor Stavros Arnoutakis delved into the rural tourism theme. Rural touristic value is one of the leading facets of Crete’s alternative tourism push.
Attending the meetings were Vice Governor of Tourism and E-Governance Kyriakos C. Kotsoglou, Dr. Irini Dimos, Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Business Administration and Tourism of the Hellenic Mediterranean University, Nikos Asimianakis, Vice-president of the European Federation of Rural Tourism ExeCom – EUROGITES, and other key advisors.
The meeting outcome was partly the agreement for creating a proposal for the Region of Crete to coordinate action to grow rural tourism on the island.
Rural tourism holds many benefits for tourists and Crete island, especially where the visitor’s connection to Crete’s nature and culture are concerned. Key elements include self-catering, balancing resource usage, a maximized experience, and other facets of this form of tourism. However, any substantial strategy will require an improved institutional framework, stakeholder involvement, and a unified effort.
To this end, Governor Stavros Arnaoutakis said that the Region supports any initiative that highlights the alternative forms of tourism in Crete, the diversity, the hinterland, and the wealth of the region’s people. He also said there would be synergies and collaborations and no individual, piecemeal actions.