Aegean Airlines aquire Olympic Air

Today the European Commission announced its decision to approve the acquisition of Olympic Air by Aegean Airlines.

The Chairman of AEGEAN Mr. Theodore Vassilakis said:

“As of today our obligation and commitment to serve our passengers and our country become even greater. While growing in size we also have to further improve our services to be more effective in the support of all Greek regions and ensure competitive access even to the smallest Greek island. The economies of scale will allow us to offer more competitive fares on our domestic network, especially for the small islands. At the same time, the synergies will allow us to support an improved growth rate for our international network, both from Athens and the periphery, contributing substantially to the development of Tourism and the Economy “.

The company will host a press conference on October 23, 2013, following the share purchase, to present its customer offering and development plan as well as its 2014 network plans.

Read the press release here.

Molyvos welcomes the Azamara

Cruise Ship AzamaraThe cruise ship Azamara was at anchor outside Molyvos today. It is not often that cruise ships visit here, which is a huge pity. The views of the village and castle from the ship would be fantastic.

I decided to have a look at the operators web site. Sadly they have some key facts wrong. “Rhodes is the largest Greek island.” Sorry guys but Rhodes is the 4th largest Greek island. Oh well, never let the truth get in the way of a good advertising campaign!

I hope that those that came ashore enjoyed their visit and will decide to make a proper visit next year.

Cruise ship Azamara visits Molyvos

Day 1 of the Aegean Regatta

The Aegean Regatta has now left Molyvos. What an amazing few days it has been. The Regatta brings a vibrancy and urgency to Molyvos which is normally totally relaxing. I am sure that everyone who visited during this time will take away memories of a very different Molyvos.

This is a fantastic video of the start of the Regatta from YouTube. You might not speak Greek but the images are stunning.

Aegean Regatta Postcards

At last I can tell you about a project I have been helping the Tourist Association with. To mark the 2013 Aegean Regatta, ELTA (the Greek Post Office) is releasing a set of 10 Aegean Regatta Postcards in a folder. They feature landscapes from Petra, Molyvos and Skala Sykaminias. I am really pleased to be able to tell you that 7 of the images used in the folder and postcard set are mine. My 15 minutes of fame has arrived at last!

Aegean Regatta PostcardsThe sets are available now from the Post Office in Molyvos and will also be available from a kiosk in Molyvos Harbour during the Regatta weekend. They cost €7.80 for the set, a real bargin.

If you can’t get to Molyvos and would like a set, simply send me an email and I will give you details of how we can get them to you.

Who will you send your Aegean Regatta Postcards to?

There are also special commemorative sets of 4 envelopes and 10 stamps available on line directly from Hellenic Post’s philately website.