Eureka! Institutional Repository

In this thesis we attempt to shed light on the key features of the Catalan capital. Barcelona before the Olympics and after them comes under the microscope with essentials architecture, art, parks, sports facilities, culture and that all this can be << mimicked >> Thessaloniki to become a dynamic and powerful capital of the Balkans and Europe. The way we analyzed all these areas is based on research and analysis of numerical data growth and personal experiences shared with us' who visited her. At the same time we try to give a brief description of the scene and other European capitals, to inductively draw the measures and proposals for Thessaloniki and the tourist development. The Barcelona of our dissertation research is a city that welcomes extroverted mainly other Europeans, Latinos and Muslims and people of other nationalities, proving that tourism development is intertwined with the acceptance and concurrence with internationalism and multiculturalism. Thessaloniki compared with primarily on the beach front and how it can be an attraction of tourism, the exploitation of the religious element in the emergence of local architectural features and finally the creation of a cultural identity that accepts the eastern Byzantine-Balkan roots and nature but turning their gaze towards the west assimilating any features possible, as was the case of Varkelonezon who established the city as an ideal tourist destination weekend and beyond.