Paros becomes "green" and is evolving into a "hot spot" for new investments in tourism

• 21/04, 2021

Grivalia is implementing another multi-star tourism investment in Paros, where the foundations have already been laid for the airport upgrade, with investments of tens of millions of euros.
At the same time from this year, even though the year is also difficult for Greek tourism, new 5-star arrivals are being prepared on the island, while the "Clean Blue Paros" initiative for less plastic with more than 100 participating companies is currently offering further added value to the destination at a time when the coronavirus has reinforced the trend for more green hospitality practices.

So Paros is becoming more "green" and is evolving into another "hot spot" for Greek tourism, as at least it appears from the growing interest in the island, which before the pandemic had record numbers, with the state airport of Paros to be one of the island airports with the largest increase in the pre-pandemic period 2016-2019.

Indicatively, compared to 2016, arrivals and departures at the airport almost tripled, while even after the pandemic, the island is expected to take off again, judging by the new investments at the airport and the multi-star hotels. It is recalled here that last November the Ministry of Infrastructure secured funding of 43 million euros for the projects at the airport of Paros (new terminal, expansion of aircraft parking, etc.).

Indicatively, regarding the new investments and even with the upgrading of the existing tourist product on the island, Grivalia, in addition to the other tourist projects in progress in Athens, Thessaloniki, Mykonos, etc., "runs" through Grivalia Hospitality for the investment vehicle in the hotels where Eurobank controls 25%) investment of about 20 million euros for the upgrade of the old hotel "Piperi" in Naoussa. The purchase of the unit for the purpose of its reconstruction had taken place in the year 2018, the year in which Briq Properties of Theodoros Fessas was placed on the island with the acquisition of Mr & Mrs White Paros

Among the new arrivals of specifications within walking distance from Naoussa is that of Cove Paros, owned by Giouli Papaioannou, who is preparing to open its doors in June 2021 on the beach of Agioi Anargyroi. The design of the boutique hotel with 45 suites was supervised by the architectural office eDje. The gastronomic proposal of the hotel has been edited by Gikas Xenakis, awarded with Golden Hats and Greek Cuisine awards for the Aleria restaurant and recognized as Chef of the Year for 2020 according to the international gastronomic guide Gault & Millau.

Respectively, from this year Kanava Hotels & Resorts, a company of Antonis and Kalia Iliopoulou with five luxury hotels in the Cyclades and international collaborations such as the one with the Marriott group, starts its new hotel project in Paros. Other well-known names of Greek tourism, such as that of the Ioannou group of Donkey Hotels, etc., are also interested in the island.

"Clean Blue Paros"
At the same time, the "Clean Blue Paros" program actively supports the hosting and catering companies to reduce their plastic footprint and already counts in its network of partners 100 member companies that through a series of specific actions contribute to the reduction of plastic pollution, on the beautiful island of Paros.

This is an initiative of Common Seas, which collaborates with the municipality of Paros and the waste management company WATT, to understand the effects of the consumption of disposable plastic in the ecosystem of Paros.

"The municipal authority, through the Clean Blue Paros program, and in cooperation with local entrepreneurs, aspires to turn Paros into an island without disposable plastic waste, implementing sustainable development and establishing a strong culture of environmental awareness," he said. Markos Kovaios, Mayor of Paros.

"We decided to make a coordinated effort with the Clean Blue Paros team to offer a breath of fresh air to the environment, which generously gives us everything. But natural resources are not inexhaustible. We must not delay anymore, it is imposed on each of us to the extent that it can help in the direction of sustainable tourism ", says Mania Abatzi, president of the Paros Hoteliers Association.

"The philosophy and culture that we generally try to instill in our partners is that of reusing our resources by adopting circular economy solutions," says Zana Kontomanoli, responsible for the Clean Blue Paros program.

The Clean Blue Paros program communicates with business owners and records their own plastic footprint, visualizes it and then proposes tangible solutions. This is one of the projects designed by Common Seas to provide the necessary strategic guidance so that companies from different industries and geographical locations can reduce their plastic footprint.

Common Seas operates in the same spirit of cooperation as it seeks to build a global alliance of islands that implement circular economy solutions. During the tourist season, the production of waste in Paros and other Greek islands, which will soon become members of the Clean Blue Alliance, is growing rapidly. Naturally, catering companies also contribute to this increase. Garbage such as plastic straws, plastic bags, food packaging and disposable coffee cups are just some of the types found on the shores.

These findings are also confirmed by the coastal surveys that are organized throughout the year at the sites that already belong to the Clean Blue alliance. These are exactly the types of waste that, along with other similar items, will no longer be disposed of by catering establishments following the passage of a relevant law, which will enter into force in July 2021.

With the aim of smoothly adapting businesses to the new regime, the Clean Blue Paros team and the Clean Blue Alliance have designed a new guide for local hotels, bars, restaurants and cafes with practices they can follow to avoid plastic consumption. In addition, it has prepared trained communication materials that will help businesses to show their customers the effort to reduce disposable plastic, while already last year it responded immediately to the new legislation for COVID-19, preparing a guide for the proper management of reusable species, even in the midst of a pandemic.

Finally, it is worth mentioning the equally important effort of the program to inform visitors and residents, that the water in Paros is safe to drink in the entire network of the island, after an independent, thorough research, the results of which coincide with those of quality audits carried out continuously by DEYAP (Municipal Water Company).