Travel spending increased by 46% against January 2006, when Romanian tourists spent 50 million euros on trips abroad. The increase witnessed in the first month of 2007 was double the level posted in January 2005, when Romanian tourists had spent more than 37 million euros. Romanians spent 73 million euros in January 2007 on holidays abroad, according to data provided by the NBR (National Bank of Romania).
"In January 2007, we saw a 40% increase in ticketing and a 40% surge for leisure traveling against the same period last year. Tourists mainly chose CityBreak packages (two or three-night holidays in European cities). Trips abroad are becoming more and more accessible for tourists with an average spending budget. You no longer need a passport, and you have the choice of traveling with a low-cost company," says Elena Stoian, marketing assistant with Aerotravel travel agency, one of the largest companies on the market.
According to travel agencies and tour operators, most Romanians traveling abroad in January choose winter sports, with the most sought after destinations being Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, and, lately, Bulgaria and Slovakia.
Second in preference were chartered flights to destinations such as the Mediterranean Sea, Egypt, Greece, Tunisia, and Morocco, while exotic holidays to the Seychelles, the Maldives and to Thailand were less popular, but much more profitable.
"For ski trips, 90% of tourists chose Austria. Trips to exotic locations were fewer in number, with just 3,000 tourists going for these destinations. However, the gains they bring are much bigger than, for example, trips to European cities," says Traian Badulescu, the spokesperson for the National Association of Travel Agencies (ANAT).
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