Golden Apple for Lesvos
FIJET has awarded its prestigious Golden Apple to the island of Lesvos in Greece. Often referred to as the “Oscar of Tourism” this award honors the destination for its extraordinary synergy of cultural and natural richness, together with a strong commitment to sustainable and authentic tourism.
The award ceremony was a heartfelt and festive tribute to the island’s authentic spirit. In a truly memorable moment, FIJET President Tijani Haddad and Plamen Starev, Chairperson of the Golden Apple Committee, presented Golden Apple recognitions to the Regional Governor of the North Aegean, Mr. Konstantinos Moutzouris; the Mayor of Mytilene, Mr. Panagiotis Christofas; the Mayor of West Lesvos, Mr. Taxiarchis Verros; and the President of the Board of Directors of “Optimum Target” Mr. Theodoros Kouskos.
FIJET President Tijani Haddad officially presented the Golden Apple to the Governor of the North Aegean Region, symbolizing the island’s collective achievement and its growing international recognition.
The celebration brought together regional and municipal officials, guests, and FIJET members in a spirit of joy and pride to honor Lesvos and its moment in the international spotlight.
The award was granted to the island for its “extraordinary synergy of cultural and natural wealth, combined with a strong commitment to sustainable and authentic tourism.”
This brief description, however, reveals only a small part of the island’s exceptional identity.
Greece, together with many of its islands, has earned a well-deserved reputation in international tourism. The Greek islands attract visitors of all ages and from every continent. Few countries in the world are as recognizable as tourist destinations as Greece. The country ranks among the world’s top 10 most visited destinations. Tourism statistics vary according to different methodologies, but in every case, more than 35 million tourists visited Greece last year. Greece itself is a global tourism brand, while many of its islands have become independent brands attracting millions of visitors annually.
Ios and Mykonos are famous for their clubs, beach parties, and vibrant nightlife. Paros attracts surfers. Delos, the mythical island of Apollo, is a true open-air museum. Naxos boasts some of the longest and most beautiful sandy beaches in the Aegean Sea. Santorini is known for its white houses and spectacular caldera. Rhodes, with its old town and medieval fortresses, is part of UNESCO World Heritage. Corfu is considered the island of aristocrats, while Antiparos appeals to those seeking privacy and tranquility.
Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson have hosted Barack Obama at their villa on Antiparos. Leonardo DiCaprio cruises around Mykonos on his yacht. Kurt Russell prefers Skiathos. Charlize Theron loves the romantic atmosphere of Paros. The list of celebrities visiting the Greek islands is long, and this glamorous presence contributes to the enduring fairy tale of the “Greek Islands.” Yet their fame is built on much more than beaches, scenery, and lifestyle. Such attractions can be found in hundreds of places worldwide. The success and popularity of the Greek islands are also the result of long-term strategies developed by professional marketers and public relations experts.
Lesvos is a classic example of a successfully designed and implemented strategy. FIJET’s Golden Apple is recognition not only of achievements so far, but also of the efforts of local authorities to prioritize tourism development while ensuring that tourism remains part of people’s natural way of life rather than harming it. Unlike many beautiful destinations around the world, Lesvos has avoided overdevelopment. New hotels are carefully integrated into the urban landscape.
What is known about Lesvos?
It is the third-largest Greek island after Crete and Euboea, with a population of around 90,000 inhabitants, an area of 1,633 km², and 320 km of coastline.
The island has five thermal springs, one of which reaches a temperature of 92°C. The mineral waters are considered highly beneficial for rheumatism, arthritis, and skin conditions.
Half of the island is green and fertile, while the other half is covered with volcanic rock formations – two completely different worlds, one of which takes visitors back to prehistoric times.
The volcanic zone contains one of the largest petrified forests in the world, covering approximately 15,000 hectares. The forest remains authentic and preserved in its original position, revealing an ecosystem that existed more than twenty million years ago.
Lesvos is home to more than 10 million olive trees, producing premium-quality olive oil.
One of the largest fortresses in the Mediterranean once protected the island.
Millions of people around the world drink Plomari ouzo, but few know that the village of Plomari is located precisely on Lesvos. The name itself evokes the image of many small elements united in harmony, like a necklace around the neck of a beautiful woman. It is here that the distillery of the Barbayanni family is located.
Barbayanni Ouzo has a rich 166-year history that began in 1860, when Efstathios G. Barbayannis brought distillation expertise from Odessa together with a copper still produced in Constantinople. The company remains family-owned and continues to preserve traditional production methods. The recipe is simple: high-quality local anise from Lisvori, aromatic herbs, and mineral-rich local water. Today, the sixth generation of the Barbayanni family produces four labels — Green, Blue, Evzon, and Aphrodite – all highly respected by connoisseurs of premium ouzo.
The “Capital of Ouzo” is also home to another distillery: Plomari Ouzo Distillery Isidoros Arvanitis S.A.
Lesvos is the homeland of Sappho (c. 630–570 BC). Plato honored her as the “Tenth Muse” because of her deeply personal poetry focused on love and emotional intimacy. Celebrated both as a poet and as a personality, she had an almost revolutionary influence on the lives and relationships of women in antiquity. Admirers of Sappho’s poetry and style of life are among the island’s devoted visitors.
In recent years, several major business groups have focused their attention on Lesvos.
We spoke about their strategy with George Strogivopoulos:
“We are focusing on wellness tourism because it generates up to 160% higher revenues than traditional tourism. We are studying extensive information from around the world to determine exactly which properties our thermal waters possess and how they can best be used. We want to offer our guests precisely what they need.
The island has between 10 and 11 million olive trees. We are uniting them into what will become the world’s largest olive ecosystem. In Aristotle’s Lagoon alone, we have planted 40,000 olive trees, from which we will produce high-quality organic olive oil.
We are also planting large vineyard areas.
We have plans to attract birdwatchers, especially those interested in observing and photographing rare species. For them, the island is a true paradise. These visitors travel with expensive equipment and a strong desire to capture the perfect moment. They are not large in number, but they generate serious revenue for the island. A similar niche market exists among sport fishermen – people from around the world seeking new places to enjoy their hobby.
During spring and autumn migrations between Europe and Africa, more than 300 bird species stop on the island, particularly in places such as the Kalloni Salt Pans – home to pink flamingos, stilts, avocets, and various heron species – as well as the Tsiknias River and Lake Metochi.”
An interesting fact about flamingos is that they hatch with gray or white feathers and only later develop their characteristic pink color due to their diet of crustaceans, blue-green algae, and carotenoids — the same pigments that make carrots orange.
Facts about the island
Aristotle spent two years on Lesvos (around 344–343 BC), conducting research in marine biology and zoology. After leaving Plato’s Academy, he traveled to the region with his colleague Theophrastus, studying the flora and fauna of the island and its central lagoon, today known as Kalloni Bay. Locals proudly refer to Lesvos as the birthplace of biology.
The Siege of Mytilene on Lesvos in 81 BC was the first documented military action involving Julius Caesar. During the First Mithridatic War, Mytilene rebelled against Roman rule. After being pardoned by Sulla in 82 BC, the young Caesar — then about 19 or 20 years old — joined Marcus Minucius Thermus, governor of Asia. It was here that Julius Caesar received his first military distinction: the prestigious Civic Crown (corona civica).
The Monastery of Limonos preserves the spirit of Byzantine culture, while the picturesque settlement of Molyvos, with its stone houses and medieval fortress, resembles a scene from an ancient fairy tale.
The history of Lesvos has been turbulent. Following its ancient prosperity, the island came under Roman rule and later became part of the Byzantine Empire for more than a thousand years. During the Middle Ages, it suffered attacks by pirates and invaders before being conquered by the Ottoman Empire in 1462. In 1912, following the Balkan Wars, it became part of modern Greece.
During the Ottoman period, the island flourished as a trading center, exporting olive oil, wine, figs, and other products, while its capital became one of the busiest ports in the Aegean.
Today, this tradition continues. Local authorities and entrepreneurs work together to develop tourism through the preservation of cultural heritage, infrastructure development, and the promotion of authentic local products such as ouzo and olive oil. It is precisely this synergy between public policy and private business that has transformed Lesvos into a sustainable tourist destination.
The island is larger than Santorini or Mykonos, for example, yet significantly less overbuilt. Local authorities see this as an advantage, focusing on authenticity rather than mass tourism.
The island offers reasonably priced products produced mainly by local businesses – meat and dairy products, olive oil, ouzo, wine, and tsipouro. Revenues remain on the island, benefiting producers, local businesses, and municipal budgets through taxes. Most hotels and restaurants are family-owned, meaning the profits stay within local families.
Local authorities, businesses, and especially the tourism sector work in close coordination to implement long-term strategies for developing both local production and tourism. Their cooperation covers island marketing, infrastructure development, festivals and events, and transport connections – especially ferry links with mainland Greece, neighboring islands, and nearby Turkey.
Among the key goals of local marketers are the development of sustainable, non-mass tourism and the strengthening of the local economy.
Lesvos receives fewer tourists than many smaller Greek islands, yet these visitors create greater local value.
The Lesvos Model
• Small family-owned hotels and restaurants
• Local products (meat and dairy products, ouzo, wine, olive oil)
• Controlled construction
• A niche, peaceful destination
• Profits remain within the local economy instead of flowing to foreign tour operators, multinational companies, and large hotel chains
Lesvos is not a center of party tourism. Instead, it focuses on cultural tourism. It does not rely on volume and mass tourism, but on quality and the strength of the local economy.
