Austria looks to CEE as a promising source of tourism and hotel business
The importance of CEE tourists for Austria is skyrocketing
Growth rates for tourists coming from Central and Eastern Europe are significantly above the average. Guests from CEE are very welcome in Austria as they are less price sensitive and tend to spend more on vacation than their Western European counterparts. These are the key findings of the new "Central and Eastern Europe as the new hope for Austria's tourism and hotel business" study, which was conducted by Roland Berger and the Austrian Hotel Association (ÖHV), and presented at a press conference at Hotel Le Meridien.
Although at 5.5% the share of guests from CEE was relatively low in 2007, annual growth in this segment is over 10%, with even close to 40% annual growth from Romania. This contrasts with practically stagnating growth from Western European tourists. Another difference is that the guests from CEE countries stay longer. That the number of tourists from Russia has increased by 30% annually since 2000 is especially noticeable in Vienna and Tyrol. However, restrictive shop opening hours are counterproductive. Furthermore, there are complaints about poor transit routes between Austria and Central and Eastern Europe.
Growth rates for tourists coming from Central and Eastern Europe are significantly above the average. Guests from CEE are very welcome in Austria as they are less price sensitive and tend to spend more on vacation than their Western European counterparts. These are the key findings of the new "Central and Eastern Europe as the new hope for Austria's tourism and hotel business" study, which was conducted by Roland Berger and the Austrian Hotel Association (ÖHV), and presented at a press conference at Hotel Le Meridien.
Although at 5.5% the share of guests from CEE was relatively low in 2007, annual growth in this segment is over 10%, with even close to 40% annual growth from Romania. This contrasts with practically stagnating growth from Western European tourists. Another difference is that the guests from CEE countries stay longer. That the number of tourists from Russia has increased by 30% annually since 2000 is especially noticeable in Vienna and Tyrol. However, restrictive shop opening hours are counterproductive. Furthermore, there are complaints about poor transit routes between Austria and Central and Eastern Europe.
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