Page 10 - iGreece_Athens WTAAA 2022

By Lars Thykier,

Chairman of WTAAA

It is with a great pleasure that beyond Athens historical appeal, the city combines col-
orful markets, delicious food, a wide array of cultur-
I’ll be chairing the next WTAAA al offerings, a vibrant nightlife and wonderful people.
annual meeting in Athens To help travelers discover and make the make of this
diversified and everchanging offer is the role of travel
(on 28 -29 November 2022). advisors. It’s therefore no surprise to me that Athens
remains on top of the list of desired destinations in the
Many reasons make this meeting world.

special and important: Finally, I have to thank our colleagues from Fed-

HATTA, without whom this meeting would have not
First of all, Athens will be the place of the first taken place. The proposal FedHATTA made a year ago
in-person meeting that our organisation has been able to host our annual meeting will now materialise and
to convene since 2019. As we all know, COVID com- I am convinced that all the member organisations of
pletely put international gatherings on hold for more WTAAA will enjoy a memorable meeting and spread
than two years. While the travel industry faced a dra- the word around:
matic situation, global organisations such as WTAAA “For business or leisure… go to (Athens and)
had to organise intense dialogue and efficient coop- Greece and Athens. The sooner, the better!
eration between the various world regions online, i.e.
without being able to meet face-to-face. I am very
proud that WTAAA managed this challenging period
successfully with active participation of members in on-
line meetings. However I am equally happy to see this
period coming to an end and welcome delegates from
most of the world in Athens.

The second reason why it is a pleasure to be in
(Athens) Greece is Athens (itself). This city is a per-
fect location to welcome international guests working Lars Thykier,
in the travel and tourism around the World: Above and Chairman of WTAAA

i GR E E C E TR A V E L