Nicosia has historically been wronged touristically, said Deputy Minister of Tourism Kostas Koumis, stressing that he will work hard to promote the capital but the task is not easy.
Continuing his circle of contacts with tourism development companies and local bodies, Mr. Koumis met on Friday with the Nicosia Tourism Development and Promotion Company (ETAP) at the City Hall of the city, with whom he discussed the challenges facing the capital.
“My opinion is that Nicosia has always been wronged as a tourist destination, there has always been a poor or mediocre connection with the coastal areas that received the large volume of visitors,” said Mr. Koumis in his statements, to add that “we must support the capital of our country to be upgraded touristically, it is not an easy task, it is a difficult task”.
As he said, in order to raise the numbers we must work on the details, any weaknesses identified must be corrected and personally I believe that we must also work for the special forms of tourism and for the good of Nicosia.
“They are some special forms of tourism, which leave promises for the tourism development of Nicosia”, he said, adding that he is here to discuss the issue with the competent local bodies.
Answering a question, Mr. Koumis recalled that the capital was the first area to develop tourism with the construction of the well-known Ledra Palace hotel, but after the “boom” that followed the Turkish invasion, the volume of tourists turned mainly to the beaches without connection of Nicosia with the coast.
“I know it’s been fixed now, I don’t know the detail, once we’ve taken over, we’ll seek to update today, we need to see all of that,” he said.
Mr. Koumis also emphasized that what special forms of tourism can stand out and help the capital must be examined.
“Personally I have some in mind, but we need to talk to the industry to be sure that it is these three or four formats that can be developed,” he concluded.
Mr. Koumis was welcomed by the President of ETAP Nicosia, Theodoros Krigou, who welcomed the Deputy Minister of Tourism.
“It is with great pleasure that we continue the previous cooperation with the Under-Minister of Tourism and we wish the Under-Minister a good start, a good continuation in the difficult task he has to perform not only for Nicosia but also for the wider areas of our island” he said.
The session, which took place at the Nicosia City Hall, was preceded by a tour of the streets of the capital by the Deputy Minister with members of ETAP.