BTA Hosts BG Tourism Forum in Burgas

Jerusalem, 18 May, 2023 (TPS) -- BURGAS, ON THE BLACK SEA, 18.05.2023 (BTA)
The Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Thursday hosts a forum titled BG Tourism – Summer 2023, in Burgas. Officials from the Ministry of Tourism and the National Assembly Committee on Tourism, leaders of public institutions and regulatory authorities, representatives of local governments, sectoral organizations, tourism experts and public figures will join the forum for discussions on the prospects for, and challenges to, the this summer season in tourism.

This is the third event under a BTA initiative for tourism conferences which are held twice a year, at the start of summer and winter. One of the key goals is to discuss the key messages used as Bulgaria is advertised as a tourist destination for the new season.

The first discussion was held in the Black Sea city of Varna in 2022.

Bulgarian summer 2023: moderate optimism and positive signals from international markets

The latest UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) barometer presented positive picture for the European tourism industry and Bulgaria in particular. It showed that Bulgaria is among the best recovering destinations in the first quarter of 2023 compared to the pre-pandemic 2019 in terms of the number of tourist arrivals – with an increase of 27%, which ranks this country sixth in the world. In terms of international tourism revenues, Bulgaria saw an increase of 21%, placing tenth in the world.

In a BTA interview in early May, Deputy Tourism Minister Irena Georgieva had “reasonably optimistic” expectations for the coming summer season based on last summer’s performance where tourist registrations totaled 4.4 million, approaching the pre-COVID 2019 with its 4.6 million registrations.

The forecast for this year is for more than in 2019.

Her expectations are also based on the flight schedules for the coastal airports of Varna and Burgas, which are already seeing a 18.5% growth in planned incoming flights from Germany.

The majority of tourists are expected to be Bulgarian citizens again but an increase in numbers is also forecast for tourists from Romania, who are particularly active in late bookings, with similar expectations for the Polish market. Compared to last summer season, there is an improvement in the German market, the deputy minister said. The markets of Ukraine, Russia and Belarus have not yet recovered, she said, but this is partly offset by the activity on the domestic market, Romania, Poland, and the UK, where very good bookings are expected for this summer.