Athens secures a Double Win at World Travel Awards 2025

Athens has been named Europe's Leading Cultural Destination at the World Travel Awards 2025 –  Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau also takes top European honour

Athens has won two significant European distinctions in the tourism sector at this year's 32nd World Travel Awards – an institution of international prestige for the tourism industry – earning the title of Europe's Leading Cultural City Destination, as well as Europe's Leading City Tourist Board.

Commenting on the two new distinctions for Athens, the Mayor of Athens, Haris Doukas, stated:

"This international recognition confirms the dynamic momentum of Athens as a city that invests in culture, sustainability, and hospitality. Our strategy is clear: we want a city that is vibrant, open, people-focused, and outward-looking, one that inspires both its residents and its visitors. This award belongs to everyone who contributes daily to improving the image and experience of Athens."

In turn, the CEO of the Athens Development and Destination Management Agency (ADDMA), Ioannis Georgizas, said:

"These distinctions are the result of a coordinated and long-term strategy that we are implementing through 'This is Athens' and the Municipality of Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau. With targeted actions and collaborations, we are internationally promoting Athens' identity as a modern, sustainable, and culturally rich destination, capable of hosting significant conferences and events throughout the year."

A competitive cultural and conference destination

In the category of Europe's Leading Cultural City Destination, Athens prevailed against major cities such as Paris, London, Prague, Rome, Venice, Dubrovnik, Edinburgh, Lisbon, Porto, and Palma (Majorca).

This new award is a testament to the Municipality of Athens' long-term strategy to promote the city as a competitive and sustainable cultural destination. Through the Develop Athens, actions are implemented that enhance the city's cultural identity, such as the annual Athens City Festival, as well as initiatives for sustainable tourism development, like the "Athena's Car-Free Street" event, as part of the European Car-Free Day.

Similarly, in the category of Europe's Leading City Tourist Board, the Greek capital was named first among cities such as Madrid, Lisbon, Rome, Batumi, London, and Berlin.

At the same time, the This is Athens Convention and Visitors Bureau (This is Athens – CVB) promotes the Greek capital as an ideal destination for conferences, meetings, and events throughout the year, through major events such as This is Athens – Agora (the city's largest B2B event, where tourism professionals from all over the world meet every spring).

The two awards add to the series of important distinctions Athens has won in recent years at the same event. As a reminder, in 2024 the city was named World's Leading Cultural City Destination, as well as Europe's Leading City Break Destination.