Faliraki acts to abandon loutish image

PR Week UK, Friday, 07 November 2003, 12:00am,

Governors and hoteliers on the Greek island of Rhodes have drafted in PR support to restore its reputation as a family holiday destination, after the severe image battering over the summer of the resort town Faliraki.

Travel specialists Doug Goodman Public Relations and the Saltmarsh Partnership have been appointed without a pitch to reposition the island plagued by reports of violence and debauchery.

‘We will be making a significant announcement about measures to curb the behaviour of young British holidaymakers to win back the family market, which has been badly affected,’ said Saltmash co-director David Esra.

‘The measures include law enforcement policies and other ways of preventing a repetition of this year,’ he added.

The PR drive will also raise awareness of the island’s culture and nature attractions.

The summer saw a spate of reports about drug-taking and lewd behaviour of young British and Irish tourists in Faliraki, culminating in the death of a 17-year-old, who was stabbed in the neck during a late-night street brawl.

Respective agency heads Doug Goodman and Geoff Saltmarsh will report to the general manager of the Rhodes Tourism Promotion organisation, Babis Palogiannidis.