Konstantinos discusses the trials of starting a business in a fragile economy, the importance of maintaining a premium guest experience, and how partnering with GetYourGuide fueled his company’s impressive growth.
When Konstantinos Chatzivasileiou decided to quit his job to start Athens Walks Tour Company in 2012, many saw it as a career-ending mistake. Greece was in the depths of a devastating economic crisis, and youth unemployment had soared to a staggering 45%. But Konstantinos had a vision. He recognized that Athens had the potential to be much more than just a brief layover for travelers on their way to Greek islands.
What began in a tiny 20-square-meter office as a two-person operation, with Konstantinos running food tours while his licensed guide handled the Acropolis, has ballooned into an operation that welcomes 125,000 guests a year. Konstantinos’ relentless dedication to providing authentic Greek hospitality ensures every guest experiences the true character of his city.
As Athens’ tourism industry recovered, then exploded, so has Athens Walks Tour Company. Today, Konstantinos has a dedicated team of 160 guides, as well as a crucial, long-standing partnership with GetYourGuide.
“I didn’t need to leave my country during the economic crisis because Athens Walks became a success story, and one of the biggest reasons for that was GetYourGuide,” says Konstantinos.
Here, Konstantinos reflects on the early days of his business, the unique challenges of operating in a booming destination, and how GetYourGuide has helped his company tap into global markets and achieve 63% year-over-year revenue growth.
Where did the idea for Athens Walks Tour Company come from?
I worked in the public relations department at the Piraeus Port Authority, which operates Greece’s largest port. My CEO asked me to take our official visitors from China, Japan, and Korea on bus tours of the port. I remember holding the microphone, telling the stories of the port and the developments underway. The visitors seemed to enjoy it, and I realized I loved doing it.
I traveled when I could and made friends from other countries. If they visited Athens, they’d stay one day before heading to the islands and ask for suggestions while they were here. I convinced some to stay in the city for five days, put on my best tour-guide impression, and showed them around.
By the end, they were sad to leave, and I realized that if you promote Athens the right way, people will love it just as much as the rest of Greece, if not more. I knew this gigantic urban area deserved to be promoted in a different way, far beyond the Acropolis.
Were you not scared to build a new business during the Greek financial crisis?
The worst years of the economic crisis were between 2012 and 2015: my first three years. Half of the population under 30 was out of a job. Leaving my secure job to start a business was seen as crazy. I needed a license from the Ministry of Tourism, which cost €24,000, and I definitely didn’t have that.
That same month, my mother became the next victim of the crisis and was fired from her job after 24 years. Her severance pay was exactly €24,000. I asked her for the money to buy the license. She told me it was impossible because she didn’t understand what I was trying to do; the concept of a modern tour operator barely existed in Greece at the time. But I convinced her.
I rented a tiny office for €180 per month (one benefit of the crisis was low rents) and began running urban food tours alongside a licensed guide who led our historic tours.
From your experience, how can partnering with GetYourGuide help a small operator grow?
GetYourGuide was one of the biggest boosters of the company. Back then, many people from Southern Europe were trying to escape the crisis and moving to places like Berlin to work for OTAs. Because GetYourGuide was so active in our market and brought me so much business, I didn’t have to leave my country.
I’ve been a member of GetYourGuide since my first year of operation. The direct bookings are fantastic, but they make up a very small part of the business today compared to what GetYourGuide brings in. It’s about 80% OTA bookings. No matter how much money or time you invest in your own SEO, an OTA will always have more reach.
GetYourGuide is a critical partner; without them, we wouldn’t have done as well as we have.
How do OTAs help tour operators like yours reach international travelers?
They invest a lot on their end to promote our tours, and they invest in new markets and translate our listings into multiple languages. We can’t do that on our own.
GetYourGuide has the massive reach and marketing budget to capture these customers. Because of this reach, the USA and Canada are our biggest markets, more than half of our GetYourGuide bookings combined. But over the last two years, we’ve started seeing tourists from places we never expected, like Central Asia and the Middle East.
Is keeping the experience authentic a challenge with 125,000 annual guests?
It is hard. You cannot have 160 guides and guarantee that 100% of them will do it the way I did 14 years ago. But I still want that connection with our customers. Even with a company this size, I still go down to the check-in point at the Acropolis to say hello to our guests, welcome them, and ask how I can help.
The most important thing when I hire guides is their social skills. The knowledge can be studied, but how you treat your customers and how you interact with people make you a good tour guide.
The best guides want to work with us because they realize that we genuinely love what we do. We respect the operation and don’t treat tourists as walking banknotes. I absolutely hate that mentality.
How have your tours developed over time?
Our biggest product is the Acropolis tour, and our second most popular is the food tour, so things haven’t changed much. Of course, we have different tours, cooking classes, and more. But even if you want to keep a premium, boutique identity, you have to provide what most people ask for, and everyone coming to Athens wants an Acropolis tour.
We keep our groups to no more than 20 people to maintain quality and a personal touch. What impresses guests the most in Greece is the hospitality. We call it philoxenia, which literally means “the love of strangers.” Greeks feel obligated to treat visitors well.
When you combine our natural hospitality with our incredible landscapes and food, guests leave very happy. It’s the only money they spend on a trip where they don’t walk away with a material object, so the experience has to be perfect. Our cancellation rate is practically zero, and our customer satisfaction rate is consistently high because we invest heavily in that human connection.
So, in your view, is GetYourGuide worth using for tour operators?
If you want to be a tour operator and not work with an OTA, you don’t have any hope. It’s like being a hotelier and saying you won’t work with Booking.com. Good luck! You simply need to work with OTAs in this industry.
You also have to love what you’re doing. Don’t be opportunistic just because tourism is growing. You have to be better than your competitors, and you have to love your job more than they do.
I sacrificed a big part of my personal life over the last 14 years to build this. I gambled my mother’s money on it. I don’t regret it, but if you aren’t ready to do that, don’t bother.
Don’t worry, I paid her back.
Key takeaways
• Capitalize on platform reach. GetYourGuide provides Athens Walks Tour Company with translated listings and targeted marketing, unlocking global reach. The United States makes up 40% of its source market by revenue through GetYourGuide, followed by France (14%), the UK (11%), Germany (10%), and Canada (9%).
• Make OTAs a core sales channel. Around 80% of Athens Walks Tour Company’s bookings now come through OTAs. Its GetYourGuide revenue has grown 63% year over year, reaching around €830,000 year to date.
• Provide what customers demand. While Konstantinos loves showcasing hidden gems, he leans into high-demand products to fuel his core business. The Premium Acropolis Tour is the company’s top seller, generating 47% of its revenue.
• Invest in the human element. Konstantinos prioritizes social skills and authentic Greek hospitality when hiring guides. This dedication to guest experience has led to its almost 5-star review average and a remarkable 0.2% cancellation rate.
• Build a scalable foundation. Athens Walks Tour Company started working with GetYourGuide in its first year to handle ticketing and reach, allowing Konstantinos to scale operations from a small two-person office to a robust team of 160 guides.
