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N. Daskalantonakis Group-Grecotel's expansion plans in Greece

New hotels, resorts, suites and villas to be opened in 2004-2005

The Nikos Daskalantonakis Group-Grecotel, Greece's largest company in the hospitality sector, is dynamically expanding in its domestic market. It employs more than 5,000 people and serves 12 million meals and 4 million snack meals a year. The group currently has the following hotels and resorts in the pipeline for 2004-2005:

(*) The N. Daskalantonakis Group-Grecotel has finalised the complete renovation and upgrading of the six-star King George II hotel on Syntagma Square from a shameful, abandoned and rundown building into a five-star luxury Athenian landmark. The property is located between N.J.V. Athens Plaza -- a Grecotel City Hotel with the flair and atmosphere of a five-star deluxe boutique hotel -- and the super luxurious Hotel Grande Bretagne. The original hotel was closed since 1988 and re-opened just before the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. The property used to be owned by Bank of Crete SA, which was acquired by ATHEX-listed EFG Eurobank Ergasias SA. Named after the former monarch who held court there, the hotel rises on the northern side of Syntagma Square (Constitution Square), with views of both the Acropolis and the Greek parliament building. Period furniture, chintz and silk give the hotel's 119 rooms and suites the elegance of 19th-century Athens -- but with ultra-modern comforts. Today, King George II is a member of the leading hotels of the world and part of the "Grecotel City Hotels" collection.
(**) A member of "Grecotel City Hotels".

In addition to the above-mentioned new developments in Athens, Sounio, the Peloponnese, Corfu, Larissa and Pilio, the group also manages hotels and resorts in Halkidiki, Alexandroupoli, Kalamata and Thessaloniki as well as on the isles of Myconos, Crete, Kos and Rhodes.

Galaxia Vacation Club / RCI

It also owns and operates Galaxia Vacation Club, a holiday club that will strengthen the N. Daskalantonakis Group's position in timesharing. According to Yiannis Daskalantonakis, the company's Chairman, Galaxia Vacation Club proposes to utilise the group’s 40 properties in Greece. The first 1,400 members have already registered. Galaxia Vacation Club is affiliated with RCI, and is an RCI Points resort. According to unofficial data, Greece has 20,000 timeshare owners, 14,000 of which are Greeks and the rest foreigners. John McDonald has been appointed as Galaxia's General Manager, International Market.

1981 
Grecotel SA is founded as the first Greek hotel management company. The shareholders: 50% TUI, 50% others.

1985
The Daskalantonakis brothers from Crete acquire the shares from other shareholders.

1991
Grecotel is the first Mediterranean holiday company with its own department for cultural and environmental protection.

1996
The "Privilege Club" is introduced for regular customers, an idea which is very successful today.

1999
Investments in a wellness programme begin with the building of the "Elixir Thalasso Centre" on Corfu.

2000
Three Grecotel hotels win a TUI Holly award -- an award for each of the 100 favourite hotels chosen by TUI guests.

2003
Grecotel, with resort hotels in the superior category, is the biggest and most popular hotel chain in Greece.

2004
Grecotel opened the Olympia Riviera Thalasso, Mandola Rosa and Olympia Riviera Oasis in Kyllini, West Peloponnese.

Today, with over 4,000 employees, Grecotel is the largest employer in the Greek hospitality sector.

What Grecotel stands for
"Individual service, a traditional style of hotel and a luxurious touch" are the most important ingredients in the Grecotel recipe for success.

Location 
The loveliest beaches and the most beautiful scenery surround Grecotel hotels on Crete, Corfu, Rhodes, Mykonos, Chalkidiki, Kos, Attica and the West Peloponnese. Which is why it's even nicer to know that the Foundation for Environmental Education in Europe, FEEE, has awarded nearly all the beaches where Grecotel hotels are situated with the coveted European Blue Flag, a seal of quality for particularly high standards of sands and bathing.

According to market research results, it is these top locations and the special care and attention taken with the landscape gardening surrounding the hotels that Grecotel guests value most.

Committed to environmental protection
Grecotel, the first Mediterranean holiday hotel chain with its own department for cultural and environmental protection, has always been a pioneer in this field. This is reflected in the way the hotels are run: energy–saving measures such as using hot water from solar plants or low-energy light bulbs are Grecotel standard.

Already in 1995, Grecotel founded the Agreco Farm near Adele, Rethymno on Crete, a model farm for organic cultivation of fruit and vegetables which now supplies more than 80% of the daily requirements for the eight Grecotel hotels on Crete. Not surprisingly, the TUI Environment Champion Award has gone to Grecotel every year since 1997. Agreco Traditional Village, an agricultural/cultural park - taverna near Adele, as well as the Danilia Traditional Village, a traditional village and museum located at Danilia on the isle of Corfu, are both traditional village parks that are part of the world of Grecotel.

Wellness 
As a top hotel company it goes without saying that Grecotel also puts the height of the luxurious wellness offer at the guest's disposal. From aroma therapy to Shiatsu and under water massages – the "Elixir Thalasso" Centres in the Grecotel hotels on Corfu, Crete and Kos offer everything an indulged heart could desire!

Individual service
Being one of the top Greek hotel brands means that, for Grecotel, first class individual service goes without saying. Proof of this can be found in more than 80 international awards received by Grecotel, from TUI Holly awards, from the tour operator TUI, to the Thomson Gold Award from the British tour operator Thomson Travel.

Sofia Hotel Balkan (formerly Sheraton Sofia Hotel Balkan), Sofia, Bulgaria
In the heart of Sofia, within walking distance from the business and commercial district and the government offices, the Sofia Hotel Balkan AD (formerly Sheraton Sofia Hotel Balkan) is recognised as the city's grand hotel and one of its architectural landmarks. The fourth-century St. George Rotunda -- located in the interior court between the hotel and the Presidential Palace, the streets of Roman Serdica, the relics of the medieval fortress of Sredetz are among Sofia's many historic jewels.

The 188-room and suite luxury hotel features two floors of Executive Rooms with private Lounge, 8 Smart Rooms and 30 Non-Smoking Rooms. An extraordinary range of guest services, free airport pick-up, gourmet dining at the Preslav and Balkan Restaurants, the Capital Bar and Casino make for an unforgettable stay.

Located on Sveta Nedelya Square, the Sofia Hotel Balkan boasts two twin Grand Ballrooms and other meeting space and offers the best and most versatile conference facilities in the city. The hotel is the ideal venue for conferences, meetings and special events.

Nestled beneath snow-capped mountain peaks, Sofia is the political, economic and cultural centre of Bulgaria. The streets of Roman Serdica, the relics of the medieval fortress of Sredetz, and the fourth-century St. George Rotunda are among Sofia's many historic jewels.

Part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.'s The Luxury Collection, the hotel was acquired by a consortium of Greek investors -- EFG Eurobank Ergasias SA and Axxon Bulgaria OOD and the N. Daskalantonakis Group -- in 2002 and is currently under management by two Bulgarian subsidiaries of the N. Daskalantonakis Group. Under the licencing agreement, the 5-star city centre hotel will  will remain part of the Starwood Hotels & Resorts chain for at least 15 years. In the first quarter of 2004, the Sofia Hotel Balkan reported an operating profit of BGN 749,000 compared to BGN 829,000 in Q1 2003. The hotel, which in 2003 reported after-tax earnings of BGN 3.222 million, will distribute a net dividend of BGN 1.615 per share (the local dividend tax is 15%) for fiscal year 2003.

Listed on the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE-Sofia), the distinguished, luxury hotel is owned by the following Greek investors: the N. Daskalantonakis Group (46.92% through the Group's subsidiaries, International Lodging of Bulgaria (23.46%) and European Hotel Enterprises (23.46%)), EFG Eurobank Ergasias (6.7%), Access Bulgaria (15.89%) and free float (30.49%).

Grecotel's logo
The swallows that float above the Grecotel logo come from an ancient Greek fresco. They symbolise homecoming.

• ARAMARK Corp. signs USD 36.5 million contract to provide food service for 2004 Olympic Games in Athens:
  The catering contract for the Olympic Village has been awarded to ARAMARK DASKO SA, a joint-venture between U.S.-based ARAMARK Corp. and Greece's N. Daskalantonakis Group-Grecotel chain (July 22, 2003)

• First Class: the first Greek Loyalty Club for city hotels, created by the N. Daskalantonakis Group's City Hotels [premium content]

Sources: N. Daskalantonakis Group - Grecotel, INVgr, INVbg.

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