cooperation

GWTO invited by Russian authorities

The president CEO of the Global Wine Tourism Organization (GWTO) José Antonio Vidal, got Russia despite all the difficulties of traveling during the pandemic. The main purpose of his visit was to hold meetings with representatives of the russian public, private and academic sectors.

Mr. Vidal’s trip started in the city of Perm (Ural region), where he participated in the Russian Culinary and Services Olympiad «Legend». Chefs from all over Russia, including regions with great potential for the development of wine tourism, took part in the Culinary Olympiad.

The opening ceremony was attended by Governor of Perm Krai,Dmitry Makhonin, the president of the National Culinary Association of Russia, Victor Belyaev, and Leonid Gelibterman, GWTO Director for Central EurAsia region and president of the russian International Center of Wine and Gastronomy. In the opening ceremony, José Antonio Vidal said: “On behalf of the GWTO I congratulate all participants and organizers of the Olympiad and wish success to the National Culinary Association of Russia. I bring you also greetings and best wishes from Rafael Ansón, Honorary President of the GWTO and President of Honor of the International Academy of Gastronomy”.

Together with Yulia Vetoshkina, Minister of Tourism and Youth Policy of the Perm Krai, and Yulia Rybakova, Adviser to the Head of the Russian Federal Agency for Tourism (Rostourism), José Antonio Vidal took part in the panel discussion ‘Development of gastronomic tourism in Russia’, moderated by Leonid Gelibterman, in which Mr. Vidal stressed that “wine tourism -matching with gastronomy proposals- is the real motor for agritourism destinations”, offering GWTO support for its socio-economic development.

José Antonio Vidal gave as well a master class about wine tourism for professors and students of the Higher School of Economics, one of the leading universities in Russia with campus in Perm, Moscow and Saint Petersburg.

GWTO president had a useful and important meeting with the Minister of Tourism and Youth Policy of the Perm Krai, Yulia Vetoshkina, who appreciated the potential of cooperation with the GWTO for the development of agritourism in the Perm Region, planning to include in the next meeting the Ministers of Culture and Agriculture, as well as the academic sector of Perm. As a joke -but, as we know, every joke has its share of truth-, Ms. Vetoshkina suggested opening a GWTO office in Perm.

In Moscow, José Antonio Vidal held four important negotiations with the main national stakeholders.

The president of the Union of Winegrowers and Winemakers of Russia,Leonid Popovich, who said: “We discussed the benefits of GWTO membership for producers who are members of the Union of Winegrowers and Winemakers of Russia”. Mr. Popovich described the possibilities of cooperation as fantastic: “We also discussed the prospects of cooperation between the GWTO Academy and Russian universities because the Union of Winegrowers and Winemakers is interested in increasing the professional level of the industry participants”. 

From the Government of the Russian Federation, the Adviser to the Head of the Russian Federal Agency for Tourism (Rostourism), Yulia Rybakova, will organize meetings among GWTO with the Ministers of Tourism of the Russian wine regions.

From the academic side, the Rector of the Moscow State University of Tourism and Sports, Masyagina Natalia Vasilievna, has also shown her interest in the educational field of the GWTO Academy.

Finally, José Antonio Vidal held a meeting with the Director of Simple Wine Travel Agency, Natalia Zhestkova, the main outcoming wine tourism touroperator in Russia.

About GWTO

A Global wine, agri and gastro Tourism Business and Knowledge Network, comprising the whole agritourism value chain located in wine destinations -related to ‘wine’ in its broader sense-, the public sector and the academic by GWTO Academy. GWTO has been created to enhance the social-economic development of wine tourism destinations and its residents through strategic value propositions, as part of an inclusive and supportive governance framework, based on the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals.

More info: Julia Smirnova
[email protected]

GWTO invited by Tourism of Greece at the Wine Tourism Conference in Santorini

The Global Wine Tourism Organization (GWTO) was present at the Wine Tourism Conference: Strategies and prospects in the post-Covid era, which was held in Santorini, at the Santo Wines congress center. Its president, José Antonio Vidal, gave the Keynote Speech, after the official inauguration by the Vice Minister of Tourism Sofia Zacharaki.

International Tourism in Greece accounts for over seven million annual tourists (before the pandemic), 20% of GDP and 25 % of employment. The country opened borders to health qualified international tourists on May 14th.

In the presentation of the campaign All you want is Greece, Minister Theocharis declared: “It is our responsibility to recover tourism as soon as possible and in a sustainable manner” to ensure the promotion of alternative Tourism “through the creation of products which attract outbound markets and collaborating with private sector associations to promote and improve the country brand”. This should be a collective effort of all the stakeholders of the tourism sector in Greece.

“Having Santorini as the starting point of two-day event devoted to wine tourism, the Ministry of Tourism launches a journey for the promotion of wine tourism throughout Greece”, said the Deputy Minister of Tourism Sofia Zacharaki and responsible for the organization of this event.

“Wine Tourism is a priority in the agenda of the Ministry of Tourism of Greece, as shown in our participation in the open days initiatives of the wineries” declared Panagiota Dionysopoulou, Director General of Tourism Policy, during her intervention in the GWTO talks session, together with the Minister of Tourism of Argentina, Matías Lammens.

The Greek Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourist Organization (GNTO) were jointly awarded the “World’s Leading Tourist Board” by World Travel Awards (WTA) in 2020, recognising the “hard work and methodical efforts, the care for health and safety carried out to millions of tourists who were hosted in Greece.”

About GWTO

A Global Wine Tourist Business and Knowledge Network -related to wine in its broader sense-, comprising the whole agritourist value chain (from public, private resources located in wine destinations,  and academic sectors),  to contribute to the social-economic development of wine tourism destinations, as part of an inclusive and supportive governance framework based on the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals.

More info at:
[email protected]

1st Tour of the Global Wine Tourism Organization LatAm

The GWTO Regional Director for LatAm, carried out his first enogastronomic tour, visiting the Province of Mendoza (Argentina).

The economist and expert in tourism, Pablo Singerman, stated “The main reason for the trip was to meet personally and officially present the OMET and its President, the Spanish José Antonio Vidal, to the highest representatives of the public, private and academic sectors related to Wine Tourism,”.

The Argentinean was received by Mariana Juri, Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Province of Mendoza, and member of the academic team of OMET Academy. “Of course the focus of our dialogue was the growing importance of Wine Tourism for Mendoza, for Argentina and for all of Latin America,” said the Regional Director.

He was also received by Sebastián Bragagnolo, Mayor of Luján de Cuyo; Fernando Barbera, President of the Gastronomic Hotel Association of Mendoza (AEHGA) and his team; Marcelo Montenegro, Vice-president of the Mendoza Tourism Entity; Mariano Alguacil, Director of Tourism Development of the Ministry of Tourism of Mendoza; Javier Espina, Coordinator of the Federal Council of Tourism of Argentina Republic (CFT); Sergio Villanueva, Executive Director of the Wine Fund; Magdalena Pesce, Ceo of Wines of Argentina (WOFA); Analía Parra, Director of Tourism of Tupungato; Ignacio Stabio from the Technical Team of the Tourism Board of San Carlos; Elizabeth Marincak, Director of Tourism of Tunuyán; Walter Bressia, Director of Bodegas Bressia and Director of Wine Tourism of Bodegas de Argentina; Claudia Yanzón, owner of the Wine Bus and member of the Association of Women in Wine of Argentina (AMUVA); Romanella Paggi from Viajes Ketek, and the main representatives of the Argentine Wine Corporation (COVIAR) headed by its President José Zuccardi and Carlos Fiochetta (General Manager). He was also received by Miguel Zuccardi, in charge of the Olive Oil division of the Zuccardi Family, and by Rodrigo Lemos, Coordinator of the Ad Hoc Wine Tourism Association of Coviar and member of the OMET consulting team.

Singerman explained to all of them that one of the purposes of OMET is to strengthen the relationships between the private, public and academic sectors, to talk about the development of Wine Tourism both in Mendoza and throughout Argentina, as well as to express the importance of the creation of the World Economic Monitor of Wine Tourism, also under his Technical Direction, in cooperation with OMET Academy.

The tour included visits and meetings at several wineries such as Andeluna -with the reception of its Wine Tourism Manager Mariana Cerutti-, The Vines, Corazón del Sol, Giménez Riilli, Salentein, Rosell Boher Lodge, Santa Julia and Monteviejo, where he met with the successful chef Nadia Haron and her winemaker, Marcelo Pelleriti. He had the pleasure of tasting excellent wines and first class dishes at the restaurants Casa Vigil Bodega El Enemigo -together with its creator, Alejandro Vigil-, the Al Pasión Lodge and the Atipana mountain restaurant, among others.

“These were five very complete days that are now part of the beginning of the tours to Wine Tourism destinations both in Argentina and all over Latin America, in which a strong alliance was established with the promise of working in favor of the development of Wine Tourism”, Singerman stated. And he assured: “We are already receiving proposals from many destinations in order to visit them and continue this virtuous process of Wine Tourism growth. We are going to work together and collaborate so that the top experiences of Enotourism take place in Latin America and to deepen the training for the development of this segment of Tourism that is growing year after year”.

ABOUT GWTO

International network of knowledge and entrepreneurism that integrates both the public and private sectors, in order to contribute to the socio-economic development of Wine Touristic destinations. All the foregoing encompassed within an inclusive, supportive and sustainable governance framework aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals.

Laura Gutiérrez & Paula Labonia, GWTO Press Delegates LatAm ([email protected])

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