Τρίτη 5 Νοεμβρίου 2013

Τα ελληνικά νησιά και η …. Μακεδονία στη λίστα του Lonely Planet

Ο τουριστικός οδηγός του Lonely Planet προτείνει για το 2014 τα ελληνικά νησιά ως πρώτο προορισμό όπου τα χρήματα του επισκέπτη θα πιάσουν περισσότερο τόπο και τη Μακεδονία (!) με πρωτεύουσα τα Σκόπια ως ένατη καλύτερη χώρα για τουρισμό …

by TOM HALL· 28 October 2013
When times are tight we suggest you travel more, not less – but pick carefully. This is where your wallet will smile at the memories for years to come.

Greek Islands

View of Navagio Beach, also known as Shipwreck Cove, on Zakynthos Island. Image by Dave Porter Peterborough Uk / Photolibrary / Getty Images.
Greece has had a tough few years, with harsh austerity measures, soaring unemployment and demonstrations hitting the world’s headlines. For a place that thrives on tourists – whether the kind that parties on sunburnt islands or hoovers up ancient culture – this is bad news. But Greece still does what it’s done brilliantly for generations. What’s missing are visitor numbers from previous years, and prices have come down in an attempt to woo them back. Combined with the chance to explore Greece’s more popular sights with fewer visitors, this means that in 2014 it offers remarkable value.
Back to the future, Balkan-style
Church on the shores of Lake Ohrid, Macedonia. Image by Keren Su / Photodisc / Getty Images.
Church on the shores of Lake Ohrid, Macedonia. Image by Keren Su / Photodisc / Getty Images.
The year 2014 marks the completion of the government’s love-it-or-hate-it makeover of the capital, Skopje.The Macedonian capital has at the same time quietly become more visitor-friendly, with a bevy of cool new hostels, upscale wine bars and bistros, and one of southeastern Europe’s best club scenes. Beyond work-in-progress Skopje and the more established tourist sites such as Lake OhridMavrovo ski area and ancient Stobi, new things are happening elsewhere. Quiet Berovo, on the border with Bulgaria, is an up-and-coming contender on the spa-hotel scene. Also in Macedonias idyllic eastern half, sturdy old Kratovo – with Ottoman-era stone bridges and cobblestone lanes – is revitalising previously derelict Turkish mansions, attesting the bygone wealth of this old mining town. And in the arid central vineyard region of Tikveš, new quality wineries are catering to thirsty visitors.

Κατά τα άλλα η κυβέρνηση λέει ότι διαπραγματεύεται το όνομα και κάνει προτάσεις … Διαψεύδεται ότι ο εκπρόσωπος της Ελλάδας πρότεινε για ονομασία των Σκοπίων στο “Σλάβο-Αλβανική Μακεδονία” [news247, Νοέμβριος 01 2013 20:16]