The Tourism and the ideal of Hospitality, have a long tradition in Greece. At the ancient times, offering a shelter to the visitors was usually the only choice, especially if there weren’t any lodgements at the area. The Ancient Greek Sanctuaries often provided shelter at a spare building, especially during Olympic Games and/or Sacred Holidays .
In ancient Greece, the ideal of “Hospitality” was born and evolved, and that explains why the Olympian god Zeus, was named as “Xenios” which means protector of the outlanders. A traveler’s arrival to his destination was under the feeling of safety, because, besides the written human laws, there was the protection provided by the Divine command of Zeus. Traditionally, the guests would receive gifts offered by their hosts as an evidence of appreciation.
Nowadays, this institution is not a faint memory of the glorious past, but a vivid and bright tradition and the determinant difference of Greece amongst other Tourist destinations.
The 80% of the surface of Greece is covered by mountains and the rest 20%, by valleys and lowland areas. The continuous alteration of these geographic features, as we travel through this Land, forms a particularly unique geomorphologic complex, which characterizes the richly varied surface of Greece.
