ATHENS, Aug. 29 (Xinhua) -- More than 1,500 exhibitors are expected to participate in the 82nd Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) that will open its doors on Saturday, September 9, the managing director of TIF-Helexpo Kyriakos Pozrikidis said on Tuesday, in an interview with the ANA radio station Praktoreio 104.9 FM.
This includes a large number of Chinese exhibitors, he added, since China is the country of honour at the 82nd TIF. "There will be more than 150 innovation and IT businesses from China in the exhibition’s largest pavilion, which has the number 13," Pozrikidis said.
Other highlights of this year’s TIF include a beach bar with real sand, to be set up in the open air outside the Aimilios Riadis Hall. As Pozrikidis said, this will be a point of interest that features many surprises, to be unveiled once it is completed, and is expected to become a major draw.
Ticket prices remain at the same levels as last year, Pozrikidis said, enabling visitors to see the pavilions and enjoy the various shows, such as the Chinese acrobats, performances, karate demonstrations and concerts, as well as a "re-enactment" of the Great Fire of 1917 in Thessaloniki, marking the first centenary since the disaster.
"The Thessaloniki International Fair is an important political and business event that attracts a lot of visitors," the vice president of Thessaloniki Hoteliers’ Union Constantinos Tornivoukas said to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency. "The fact that China is the country of honour in this year's exhibition is expected to attract a lot of Chinese visitors," he added.
On his part, Pozrikidis referred to the good prospects for increasing tourist flows from China. "The Chinese love the Greek culture and our country," he underlined, adding that the Athens-Beijing direct flight to be launched by Air China in September will also help boost tourism.(Edited by Zhang Yuan, source: Athens News Agency)
A single purchase
