The region of Troodos was selected by the Cyprus Tourism Organisation as
the winner of the national competition for the ”Best Emerging Rural
Destination - Cyprus”. This competition was organised under the aegis of
the European Commission’s European Destinations of Excellence (EDEN)
Programme, in which 10 European countries participated.
The objective of the EDEN Programme is to emphasise sustainable tourism
development and the promotion of special interest tourism. The EDEN
Award provides winning destinations with significant international
recognition, and facilitates their promotion and general visibility on
the international tourist map.
The European Commission awarded 10 destinations during the European
Tourism Forum, which took place in Algarve, Portugal on 25-26 October
2007. The awards were presented by Mr. Gunter Verheugen, Vice President
– V.P. of the European Commission. Representing Cyprus at the event were
Mr. Panagiotis Papadopoulos, representative of the Troodos Regional
Tourism Body; Mr. Andreas Panagides, Vice Chairman of CTO; and Ms. Maro
Kazepi, CTO’s Tourist Officer CTO – Cyprus EDEN Coordinator.
The objective of the EDEN Programme is to emphasise sustainable tourism
development and the promotion of special interest tourism. The EDEN
Award provides winning destinations with significant international
recognition, and facilitates their promotion and general visibility on
the international tourist map.
The European Commission awarded 10 destinations during the European
Tourism Forum, which took place in Algarve, Portugal on 25-26 October
2007. The awards were presented by Mr. Gunter Verheugen, Vice President
– V.P. of the European Commission. Representing Cyprus at the event were
Mr. Panagiotis Papadopoulos, representative of the Troodos Regional
Tourism Body; Mr. Andreas Panagides, Vice Chairman of CTO; and Ms. Maro
Kazepi, CTO’s Tourist Officer CTO – Cyprus EDEN Coordinator.
The EDEN Award Ceremony was broadcasted live
through the European Commission’s website during the Forum. Cyprus and
Troodos were promoted through an EDEN Exhibition Stand which lasted
throughout the duration of the European Tourism Forum. special The
promotional materials developed for the project include a 3- and
10-minute digital film and brochure highlighting Troodos, and can be
accessed on the project website:
www.rural-cyprus.com, or at the European Commission’s site:
http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/services/tourism/
eden_winners_2007.htm
The 10 winning European Destinations of Excellence in 2007 are:
1. Austria: Pielachtal
2. Belgium: Durbuy
3. Croatia: Sveti Martin na Muri
4. Cyprus: Troodos
5. Greece: Florina
6. Hungary: Orseg
7. Italy: Specchia
8. Ireland: Clonakity
9. Latvia: Kuldiga
10. Malta: Nadur
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Ms. Maro Kazepi,
EDEN Project Manager, CTO (left) and Mr. Andreas Panagides,
Vice-Chairman, CTO, at the Cyprus Exhibition Stand
Ms. Maro Kazepi,
EDEN Project Manager, CTO, presenting the Troodos region at the
European Tourism Forum
The Cyprus
delegation accepts the Best Emerging Rural Tourism Destination award
from Mr. Gunther Verheugen, Vice President of the European
Commission.
Ms. Maro Kazepi,
EDEN Project Manager,
CTO, presenting the Troodos region at the European Tourism Forum
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