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Post by artisans on Aug 6, 2018 9:58:31 GMT 2
Talking to one Roda businessman yesterday, out of 25 customers dining, only four were British. The shift in nationalities has never been more noticeable, and the need for business to adapt has never been more important.
Across the board, Roda is having a good year, but as the mix of clientele changes, so do the fortunes of our bars & restaurants. Gone are the days when they can rely on speaking only English or German, and gone are the days when their old business formats will carry them through. It’s time for everyone to consider how they can tap into this new opportunity.
Our cosmopolitan mix of visitors have different needs than traditional, mainly British, tourists. By observation, they don’t necessarily want to see tribute acts, they don’t relate to the ubiquitous bar scene or the English quiz. Having not visited most of their countries, I can’t say what they would do if they holidayed at home. Like most Mediterranean people, they do seem to enjoy the evening stroll, the paseo as they call it in Spain, before stopping for a relaxing meal with family & friends. Some bars & restaurants seem to be at their peak around 9:30 pm, the time at which previous visitors have been heading off for their evening entertainment. In fact, that may be the key factor, in that our new visitors make their own entertainment, rather than have it provided for them.
At one bar/restaurant this week, we saw over forty people, in groups of four or more, arriving, looking for food and waiting to be seated - all within 30 minutes! Again, this was around 9:30 pm, when the kitchens in those places providing evening entertainment are closing. These are some of the factors leading to the changes we are seeing in the village.
So what are the secrets of success in this new Roda? We can each draw our own conclusions and location clearly plays a big part, but on our evening stroll we have do see some of the places that are exceptionally busy. This year has been good for Ammos Grill Room, The Boathouse, New Port Restaurant, Pirates’ Bar, Yummies, Pixida & La Luz. We’ll have to venture further afield later, to see what’s happening elsewhere.
Steve
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Post by wendyb on Aug 6, 2018 19:04:55 GMT 2
Personally, I think this can only be good for Roda. As a “Brit” I don’t actually go on holiday for tribute acts, and all things British. I like to sample the culture. We’ve been coming to Roda for 30 years, it never really changed much, but I seem to remember about 6-7 years ago it suddenly seemed really OTT and tribute acts were everywhere, every night. We still had a great holiday but was glad when we came back a couple of years later to find it had died off a bit. That’s why Roda has always been a draw for us, it retained a lot of its charm and “Greekness” and somehow catered for all tastes without being Costa del Greece. If I wanted home from home England, wall to walk tribute acts and nothing but English food, I’d go to Benidorm.
Having said all that, I must say that Pirates full English breakfast is second to none, and we’ve always enjoyed Crusoes quizzes (only the music ones though) even though we didn’t get chance this year, only having a week instead of our usual fortnight. We made an effort to travel to a couple of restaurants in the surrounding areas, and enjoyed them immensely.
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Post by wendyb on Aug 6, 2018 19:14:18 GMT 2
As an add on to the above, regarding languages spoken... yes it’s nice when the locals speak English, but not a necessity, for us, anyway. You can generally make yourselves understood, maybe even make an effort to speak the native language. As an example, look at France. We’ve been a few times, and the French are very, well, French. That’s their language and that’s what they speak. I find that if we make an effort to converse in French, then they do make an effort to try and speak English. Although I suppose there will always be a lot of people who would rather go to Spain where everyone speaks English. But that’s just my personal thoughts, not meaning to offend anyone.
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Post by janiemou on Aug 6, 2018 22:56:00 GMT 2
I agree with what has been said about the changes that are happening here. There was a time when the bars and restaurants were full of young British girls and boys out for the summer. Now there are more locals or ones married to Greeks or have one Greek parent. English is taught more in the schools so the need for British workers has decreased somewhat, together with the law being tightened up where the wages are paid direct into a bank account, this has resulted in fewer cash in hand jobs. My daughter in law who is Polish had no problem picking up the basics of the Greek language, and I suspect that it is similar for the other east European visitors we are now getting. It is probably better to provide a nice atmosphere for casual dining or drinking than paying out for acts, or extending a quiz to promoted extra drinking. I agree we don't want Costa del Greece here, and am enjoying the changes that we are seeing.
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kaz
Roda Anorak
Posts: 3,961
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Post by kaz on Aug 7, 2018 14:58:56 GMT 2
Sounds good to me...I would never go to "The Costa's"... and I wouldn't want Roda etc.to be Costa del Greece.....See you all in September for another wonderful holiday in Roda (MY REAL HOME) ?
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kaz
Roda Anorak
Posts: 3,961
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Post by kaz on Aug 7, 2018 15:00:19 GMT 2
And I didn't put those faces 0n I wanted a Happy Face
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Post by janiemou on Aug 11, 2018 11:00:33 GMT 2
And I didn't put those faces 0n I wanted a Happy Face A cheats way to put a happy face is to type a colon followed by a hyphen then a left bracket (the one on the zero key), the computer will usually recognise that as a happy face and put it there for you. OK it doesn't seem to be working here. Jan
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kaz
Roda Anorak
Posts: 3,961
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Post by kaz on Aug 11, 2018 11:12:34 GMT 2
Just a Happy Happy face..............I will try??
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Post by beadle17 on Aug 13, 2018 11:18:35 GMT 2
Reading some comments on here it's makes the old Roda sound like rubbish. Ok I don't like tribute bands, but I like to eat when. I want. I see that some people are glad to see that the British numbers are diminishing in Roda,but a word of warning if Britain leaves the eu with no deal, the britains will no longer have freedom of movement in the eu
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Post by artisans on Aug 13, 2018 16:04:22 GMT 2
Just observations, beadle ... Brits tend to eat early to get to the bars, which influences what they can eat in the time available. The bars they are going to serve food, but that stops too early for anyone else. Many other nationalities seem to be eating around 9-10pm, which is what they want, and then come the Greeks a bit later. Ammos Grill Room had about 30 people eating last night at 11:30pm.
Steve
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Post by wendyb on Aug 13, 2018 23:14:48 GMT 2
The old Roda was never rubbish, ever. It’s great that restaurants are staying open later, everyone will be catered for, early eaters, late eaters, whoever. People with kids will usually want to eat earlier, not to get to the bars, but to get the kids sorted, especially if they’re young kids. Personally we’re probably mid to late eaters. I’m sure there’s room and choice for everyone.
With there being far more nationalities having discovered Roda, it has to adapt to survive, and from what we saw when we were last in Roda in June, it’s doing a great job of it. That’s the beauty of Roda, there’s something for everyone, but it’s still essentially Greek, and retains the charm it’s always had, just in a more cosmopolitan way.
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Post by wendyb on Aug 13, 2018 23:19:13 GMT 2
And, when, not if, we leave the EU, we’ll still be able to travel. It’s not like we’re all going to be stranded in England and not allowed out- Although tbh if every summer was as nice weather wise as this year, we wouldn’t need to go on holiday abroad, the UK has so many beautiful places, right on our doorstep, without having to get on a plane.
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Post by laurence on Aug 14, 2018 10:18:00 GMT 2
Very true that there are many different nationalities visiting Roda but is it really good for the village when I have seen several Romanian cars in particular arrive filled with food from their own country to cook in their apartments. No good for the supermarkets or restaurants. Several other eastern Europeans bringing their own food and drink to the beach. I even witnessed primus stoves heating up food at the Skouna sunbeds. Filming Oscars tribute night but when invited inside they disappeared. Many times I walked along the beach during my 6 week holiday and whereby I heard very few English speakers one thing was very clear to me, in the main, it was only the Brits who were spending any money. Roda cannot live by sunbeds alone. Even when offers of free water don't entice more spending. Apartment owners are happy but restaurant and bar owners were feeling the pinch. They have a short season, and it's getting shorter, to make 12 months money or they cannot support their families. These non-spenders will kill Roda and many other places if Roda itself doesn't change. Minimum spend approach is a possibility. Eastern Europeans are welcome but to spend money. They have been kicked out of Egypt and Turkey for political reasons now they find Greece. How long will Greece and Roda in particular survive on sunbeds alone. Sad to say not very long.
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Post by laurence on Aug 14, 2018 12:47:42 GMT 2
Can I ask WendyB if you have a crystal ball? Nothing has been decided between the UK government and the EU. I was on the website this morning and most certainly the main travel discussion point is the future of the EHIC which if not renewed will deter thousands if not millions of British holidaymakers from going outside the UK. I, for 1, hope that it is renewed but if it isn't what will you do? I know that even travel insurance will not suffice for me and many others of the older generation.
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Post by wendyb on Aug 15, 2018 0:01:11 GMT 2
No, I don’t have a crystal ball. But I do know that we aren’t going to be imprisoned in the U.K. People can and do already go to non-EU countries for their holidays. There will still be a choice. We all choose where to go, what to spend our money on, where to spend it. Europe will still be a choice as a holiday destination. If we find that we can’t afford to go abroad, wherever that may be, then shock horror we’ll have to stay in the UK. No great hardship, even when the weather is crap; there are wonderful places here too. We already can’t afford to bugger off to Europe for six weeks at a time, so will just have to plan our paltry one or two weeks accordingly to our budget. Unfortunately for some, it may also mean that ex-pats who no longer contribute anything to the UK but still come back to use our health service, won’t be able to do so. But that’s a whole other debate, isn’t it?
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