In 1959, Spyros Kokotos was drafted in the Hellenic Navy and received a military commission as an ensign in December 1959. He was stationed at the naval port of Souda in his native Crete, where he served in Naval Public Works until July 1960. He was then transferred to the navy's Hydrographic Office, where he served until May 1961, when he was again transferred to the "Officers' Autonomous Building Society" and was charged with architectural work on the expansion of the "General Papagos" suburb in Athens. In April 1962, he received extensive leave from the navy, and was finally discharged in 1982.
Professional career
Even while still attending university, Spyros Kokotos worked as a junior architect on the Athens Hilton project, so since graduation he has been mainly involved with tourism projects, having built more than 40 hotels throughout Greece. Collaborating closely with his brother George Kokotos, a civil engineer, they designed and built a number of hotels on the island of Rhodes, including the Esperia hotel and Aura hotel, culminating in the design and construction of the Rodos Bay hotel with 260 rooms and suites, and 60 bungalows. Other early hotel projects in the early 1960s include the El Greco hotel and Emmanuel N. Foundoulaki's Esperia hotel S.A. in Herakleion, Crete, the Hermes hotel in Aghios Nikolaos, Crete, and the Arcadio and Olympic hotels on the island of Corfu. Having established a reputation as one of the country's finest architects for hotels, Spyros Kokotos also designed in the late 1960s the Club Med hotel on the island of Kos, the Poseidon Hotel in Loutraki, and the Minos Palace hotel in Aghios Nikolaos, Crete.
Personal Achievements
Spyros Kokotos is more widely recognised for and accredited with the creation of the luxurious hotels and resorts of Elounda in his native Crete. He has designed and built the following 5* hotels in the region: Elounda Beach, Elounda Bay, Elounda Mare, Porto Elounda, Elounda Peninsula. Spyros Kokotos is also one of the founding members and first president of the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises, and the main driving force behind all its policies. SETE is now widely recognised as the main influence behind Greek tourism policy, acting as a preferred partner to the Greek government.
Family Status
Spyros Kokotos is married since 1973 with Eliana Kokotos, born Sotirchou and has three children: Fotis Kokotos, born 14-June-1974, Ilias Kokotos, born 9-October-1975, and Marina Kokotou, born 14-November-1980. He has one brother, George Kokotos.
