Dr Vasilis Papavasiliou
Head of the Hospitality & Tourism Field
Senior Lecturer
Contact details
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25736501 |
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25736629 |
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vpapavasiliou@ctleuro.ac.cy |
Brief description
Dr. Vasilis Papavasiliou received his Ph.D. from the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU). He is the head of the hospitality department and Lecturer in the field of hospitality and tourism, CTL Eurocollege, Cyprus.
He has a keen interest on topics in relation to culture and identity creation. Specifically his research focuses on understanding how individuals interact independently but also as a collective within the tourism and hospitality world. Hence, his academic and research interests are cultural anthropology, identity politics, authenticity and tourism destination development. His thesis title was ““Collective memory and narrated destination image: Interpreting the tour guides narratives in guided tours” and focused on Cyprus. The key research areas were collective memory, history education in a comparative context involving the two sides of divided Cyprus.
Apart from research and teaching, he is also actively involved within the Cyprus tourism industry. He has participated the “Meet in Cyprus – Virtual Expo event” (Date: 14-15 April 2021) in collaboration with the Deputy Ministry of Tourism. He produced and presented a 20-minute promotional video for the island. The video was shown during the two-day virtual event. It received positive feedback and attracted the attention of hotel representatives, travel agencies as well as events companies, which participated at the event.
Vasilis had also contributed to the “International Travel Exposition in Hong Kong” (Date: 13-16 June 2019), where he represented and promoted Cyprus at the exposition in Hong Kong. The Cyprus Deputy Ministry of Tourism invited him to the event where he also collaborated and represented the KYTV Travel Agency.
ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS
PhD (2021)
- PhD in Hotel and Tourism Management - UNWTO Tedqual certified
- Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HK)
- Thesis title: “Collective memory and narrated destination image: Interpreting the tour guides narratives in guided tours.”
Master’s Degree (2014)
- Master’s Degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management - UNWTO Tedqual certified
- Bournemouth University (UK)
- Dissertation title: “The evolution of the Traditional Cypriot Restaurant: Authenticity perceptions between locals and tourists.”
Bachelor’s Degree (2012)
- Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management and Marketing.
- Certified by the association of MBAs (AMBA) Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB)
- Hull University (UK)
- Dissertation title: “How far has Disney been successful through the communication of theme to motivate visitors to attend its theme parks? An investigation based on European and Asian/Pacific Rim university students.”
EMPLOYMENT HISTORY
- CTL Eurocollege (September 2021 – Present)
Joined the CTL Limassol Eurocollege undertaking a lecturer position in tourism and hospitality. Specifically the programs assigned to him during the first semester were (i) Food and beverage management and control and (ii) Housekeeping operations for degree and diploma levels (iii) Front Office Operations.
- KYTV Tourism and Travel (August 2018 – 2021)
KYTV was a Hong Kong based travel agency, which had offices in Limassol, Cyprus. It was a full-service travel agency, catering everyone from backpackers to luxury travelers. He was freelancing for the agency. The activities in which he was engaged were (i) escorting tourists around Cyprus and Asia if it was needed (ii) marketing and promotion (iii) assisting in creating specialized travel packages for guests. Furthermore, he represented the company in international travel expositions and events alongside with the Deputy Ministry of Tourism. Due to the global pandemic, the agency ceased operations in March 2021.
- Tour Guide in Berlin, Germany - For SANDEMANS walking tours and single day tours (July 2015 –February 2016)
Undertaking advance level German History examinations and living for nearly one year in Germany provided him with sufficient knowledge to guide tourists in historic attractions relating to Nazi Germany and World War II. After undergoing rigorous training by SANDEMAN walking tours in Berlin he was able to guide small groups of tourists around key points. Doing so he had the pleasure of experiencing and knowing more about the history of Germany, the stories behind memorials and current historical attractions such as the Berlin Wall, the Concentration camps, and the Jewish memorial. What fascinated him the most was the constant interaction with tourists from all over the world. Furthermore, although this was a tough job due to the exposure to different weather conditions. As such his tourist guiding skills improved drastically.
PUBLISHED PAPERS, ABSTRACTS AND ARTICLES
ACADEMIC JOURNALS
Published papers and chapters
- Papavasiliou, V., Malkawi, E. and Hadjielia Drotarova, M. (2024) ‘Dark tourism acceptance and peacebuilding in troubled destinations’, in Farmaki, A. (ed.) A Research Agenda for Peace and Tourism. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd.: Glos, pp. 69–88.
Work-in-progress papers:
- Vasilis Papavasiliou, “Negotiating reconciliation and peace through narratives – The case of Cyprus”.
Conferences, Workshops, Seminars and Exposition Participation
- THE INC 2022 - Tourism, Hospitality & Events International Conference (22-24/06/2022)
Organized by the Cyprus University of Technology (CUT), the University of Derby, University of Sunderland and the Centre for Research in Tourism Excellence (CERTE). He had have submitted an abstract for the presentation titled: “Negotiating reconciliation and peace through narratives – The case of Cyprus.”
- 35 Annual Agia Napa Festival (27/09/2019)
Presenter of the event: «Εmbrace Guangzhou, China – Ayia Napa Cyprus»
Scheduled and coordinated the presentation. Welcomed the Mayor of Ayia Napa, Mr. Yiannis Karousos (Now Minister of Transport), Guangzhou’s Deputy Mayor Mrs Li Xiaomian Vice Chairman, Standing Committee of Guangzhou Municipal People's Congress, Mr. Huang Xingyuan, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Cyprus and Mr. Yang Deming, President of Cyprus Guangdong Association of Commerce.
- Hong Kong Smart Hotel Summit at Hotel Icon. (6 June 2019)
He participated as part of a panel titled ‘Unleashing the Potential of Smart Mobility in Hong Kong’. The discussion focused on how smart technology can help the hotel industry become more environmentally friendly. He discussed how smart mobility and smart city measures can help bring forth both economic and social benefits, such as significant improvement in air quality. Examples, such as the Green mini bus and handy smartphones used in the Hotel Icon (The universities department hotel) contributed to the success of smart mobility in the city.
- APacCHRIE & EuroCHRIE Joint Conference in Hong Kong. (22-25 May 2019)
He participated in this events workshop called Design Thinking. His interest focus was digitization and the challenges faced by Brands and Hybrid Concepts. The focus of this worship aimed on discussing on how does design thinking relate to the traditional approach of hospitality and how does it influences research. With a PHD colleague, he shared our insights on how creativity tools can be utilized for best practice of design thinking in the hospitality industry.
- International Conference on Tourism - Hanoi, Vietnam. (Sep 26 & 27 2018)
The theme was Smart Tourism. The conference focused on the contemporary context of tourism, which refers to issues such as, global competitiveness, environmental and cultural preservation and protection, changes in tourist’s behaviors, and particularly the extensive and intensive application of technologies in tourism. He participated in a presentation that focused on tourism destination management and how smart technologies can be utilized in heritage management.
- Tourism and LGBT Workshop Inclusion in greater China, Hong Kong. (17 July 2018)
One of his research areas and interests is the inclusion of the LGBT community within the workplace and travel industry. He participated in this workshop with a fellow PHD colleague. He shared insights and gave a presentation. The workshop explored what a good equal opportunity and anti-discrimination policy looks like to ensure an inclusive environment for LGBT+ employees. In addition, the workshop looked at what benefits companies can provide LGBT+ employees, highlighting leading examples from the greater China area.
PROFESSIONAL JOURNALS
- Papavasiliou V (2023), “Nicosia, the world's last divided city. The paradox between the tour guides narratives in guided tours” (Online Paidia News)”Λευκωσία, η τελευταία διαιρεμένη πρωτεύουσα του κόσμου. Συγκρίνοντας τις αφηγήσεις των ξεναγών."