Santorini to Host Luxury Tourism Conference; Randi Zuckerberg headliner

Santorini will once again position itself at the forefront of high-end travel by hosting its third annual Luxury Tourism Conference this October, an event set to feature Randi Zuckerberg — sister of Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg and CEO of Zuckerberg Media — as a keynote speaker. The conference aims to reinforce the island’s status as a leading global luxury destination while addressing pressing challenges around sustainable growth, cultural preservation, and infrastructure.

In a pre-conference press event, local leaders outlined ongoing efforts to balance tourism development with environmental and cultural safeguards. Mayor Nikos Zorgos compared Santorini to the “Homeric Helen,” stating, “This ‘body’ needs special care. We don’t want more hotel beds; we want rational development and landscape preservation.” He emphasized the need for improved public planning to catch up with decades of rapid, privately-led growth and highlighted ongoing projects in water management, port upgrades, museum development, and the restoration of the ancient theater at Ancient Thera.

Antonis Pagonis, President of the Santorini Hoteliers Association, revealed the island’s outsized economic role: though small in size, it accounts for 10% of Greece’s tourism and 3.1% of national GDP. Last year, Santorini welcomed over 3 million visitors — 2.1 million through the airport and port, and 1.3 million via cruise ships. Still, per-capita tourist spending fell by 11.1% compared to 2023, due in part to early-year seismic activity. Pagonis stressed the need for strategic planning through 2035 to improve visitor distribution and support sustainable development.

Marcos Kafouros, head of Santo Wines and the Union of Theraic Products, highlighted the island’s deep agricultural roots, including a 38,000-year-old fossilized olive that helped date the island’s catastrophic volcanic eruption (1613 BC). Today, Santorini produces three PDO products — wine, fava beans, and cherry tomatoes — with olive oil recently joining the list. Kafouros warned that climate change and water scarcity threaten these traditional cultivations.

Giorgos Nomikos, President of the Thira Port Fund, presented an environmental initiative based on prevention, education, and innovation — including a digital app for monitoring waste and a “Plastic Club” to promote circular economy solutions. He also announced plans to tender the Monolithos marina project in 2025.

Organized under the auspices of the Greek National Tourism Organization and the Santorini Hoteliers Association, with support from Aegean Airlines, the conference is produced by Update Entertainment under journalist Elli Spyropoulou.