Greece shines from Olympic legacy

As the winter Olympics gets under way in Turin, a new report underscores the positive effect hosting the games can have on a destination's desirability.

Greece consistently ranks among the top tourist destinations, a report by Research and Markets found, with improvements carried out in Athens for last summer's Olympic Games helping the country to maintain its edge over rivals such as Turkey.

Research and Market's Travel and Tourism International 2005 – Profile of Greece report found that the country is a frequent inclusion in lists of the top-15 global holiday destinations, attracting some 14 million international travellers a year.

The report notes that Athens has become particularly popular as a city break destination, thanks in no small part to the infrastructure improvements, metro system expansion and up-grades carried out on the city's hotels in preparation for the Olympics.

The majority of Greece's international visitors come from the UK, Germany and Scandinavia, representing six of the 14 million international tourists that visit the country every year.

Greece is also a popular destination among its own citizens, with four million Greeks choosing to holiday at home during 2002.

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