With the massive attendance of hundreds of hoteliers, the 13th General Assembly of the Hellenic Chamber of Hotels was successfully concluded on Saturday, November 22, within the framework of the Xenia exhibition.
The recently re-elected president of the HCH, Alexandros Vassilikos, was the first to take the podium to greet the proceedings of the assembly, which this year held special significance, as it marked 90 years since the founding of the Chamber. In his speech, Mr. Vassilikos referred to the five pillars upon which the “next day” of Greek Hospitality will be built: Authenticity, Attraction of workforce, Development with respect for the environment, shaping a new culture of hospitality, and finally Social responsibility—with hotels open not only to visitors but also to local communities. The president of the HCH also made special mention of the issue of short-term rentals, which has now become a major social problem across Europe, as well as the unfair practices of large digital platforms—a crucial issue for the sector. On this matter, the HCH together with HOTREC (the European Confederation of Hospitality) has taken action at the European level, with an unprecedented lawsuit involving more than 10,000 hotels from all over Europe.
Finally, Mr. Vassilikos expressed his gratitude for his unanimous re-election and, as he characteristically said: “Both I and all the members of the Board will work tirelessly to prove ourselves worthy. Hospitality is nationally our absolute comparative advantage. We must recognize it and protect it. To achieve this, new foundations are needed that ‘step’ into the future. The basic prerequisite is quality at all levels. Quality must exist both in 5-star and 1-star hotels, in private investments as well as in public infrastructure.”
Next, Deputy Minister of Tourism Anna Karamanli took the podium, who, on behalf of Minister Olga Kefalogianni, congratulated the new Board of the HCH and gave a brief account of the government’s work. Ms. Karamanli noted, among other things, that Tourism is a strategic pillar of development for the country, while she also referred to recent data from the Bank of Greece regarding foreign tourist arrivals in the period January–September 2025, which, as she said, showed an increase of 4% compared to the same period in 2024.
Immediately afterward, the president of the Hellenic Federation of Hoteliers (POX), Giannis Chatzis, emphasized the importance of small and medium-sized tourism enterprises, which have greatly contributed to the success of Greek Tourism. Mr. Chatzis also highlighted as a key problem for the sector the lack of access of these enterprises to financial tools. “There is a substantial lack of institutional attention to our sector, and we must not accept any discussion of productive models in which tourism does not hold a central role,” noted the president of POX.
Equally important was the intervention of the president of the Institute of Tourism Research and Forecasts (ITEP), Konstantina Svynou, who referred, among other things, to the conclusions regarding the long-term evolution of hotel capacity during the decade 2015–2024, which reveal the overall upgrading of the sector. Indicatively, 5-star hotels more than doubled (+103%), 4-star and 3-star hotels recorded increases of 43% and 23% respectively, while 2-star and 1-star hotels decreased by about 20%.
Finally, Professor Emilia Vlami, scientific supervisor of the HCH Boutique Hotel program, spoke about the evolution of the concept as a philosophy of accommodation in Greece, while Ms. Katerina Saridaki, director of the Capsule T Accelerator, gave a brief account of the program, which has already completed seven acceleration cycles.
HCH Initiatives for the 90-Year Anniversary
It is worth mentioning the presentation by HCH Director Agni Christidou regarding the Chamber’s initiatives for the overall upgrading of the domestic tourism product. Among these are the “Capsule Travel & Hospitality Accelerator,” the “Greek Breakfast” program, as well as the HCH’s online campaign on short-term rentals titled “We Are Talking About Our Lives.” Ms. Christidou also made special reference to the initiative “Hospitality with Value for All,” organized on the occasion of the Chamber’s 90th anniversary. The aim of the initiative is to highlight, through various actions in Athens, Rhodes, Thessaloniki, and (in a few days also in Kalamata), the sector’s contribution to Development, Sustainability, Employment, and the consolidation of inclusive principles and the values of an open society.
