Thessaloniki is a magnet for diversity, bringing together ancient and new. Contrast and convergence give the city a rare vibrancy and dynamism: Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, and Jewish history co-exist side-by-side. From this history bursts forth a wellspring of stories, spilling into the present, and indeed, the city’s slogan is “Many stories, one heart.” You need a very big heart to tell so many stories, and that is why Thessaloniki was chosen as the perfect host for EuroPride 2024, the largest annual LGBTQI+ festival in Europe. The event will bring tens of thousands of tourists to Thessaloniki and northern Greece to discover the city for themselves.
EuroPride is not only an opportunity for Thessaloniki to showcase itself as a fantastic and welcoming tourist destination, but also a chance for the whole city — and Greece — to celebrate diversity and inclusion. We, George Tsunis and Albert Bourla, both with deep ties to Greece and America, wholeheartedly believe that Greeks are people with philotimo who love and honor all of God’s children including the LGBTQI+ community. Tolerance and respect for difference are critical values inherent to democracy born here in Greece. And the strongest democracies, like the United States and Greece, go one step beyond tolerance: they support and embrace difference.
This not only makes human rights sense, but also good economics:
EuroPride attracts huge crowds every year and next year’s event is expected to draw up to 80,000 people. Greece is a beloved destination, and this is a chance for Thessaloniki to open a new tourism front. EuroPride will likely bring more visitors than previous editions of the festival. The LGBTQI+ community accounts for approximately ten percent of global tourists and there were 13 million international LGBTQI+ tourists who traveled to Europe in 2021. This group of travelers has an estimated annual spending power of US $3.9 trillion which also accounts for 16 percent of total travel spending annually (or $195 billion per year) – that’s for the whole world.
What’s more – the visitors who come next year, many for the first time, once having discovered Thessaloniki will return again and again.
For example, in recent years, more and more American tourists are discovering Thessaloniki, especially through cruises, which has gone up more than ten-fold since 2019. And it’s not just tourists: American companies, such as Pfizer, Deloitte, Cisco, Accenture, and Chubb, have recently established offices in the city as well.
But EuroPride is not just about numbers and statistics. It’s also a celebration of the personal journeys of LGBTQI+ people from Thessaloniki and around the country and the world who have faced challenges and overcome obstacles to live their lives authentically and proudly. EuroPride will showcase these stories in Thessaloniki, which has embraced diversity and inclusion in the past and present. This festival embraces Thessaloniki as a model of democracy where love is a value and where we lead with our hearts.
EuroPride offers opportunities to show the world the wondrous beauty and renowned philoxenia of Thessaloniki and northern Greece and to promote human rights and social justice for all. This festival will celebrate life and love in Thessaloniki. We plan to attend and invite you to join us in celebrating EuroPride 2024 and all this unique city has to offer.
