Bookings to Greece have exceeded all expectations, said Andrea Springer of Springer Reisen Tour Operators during an event held in Austria.
The head of the Austrian tour operator said that the packages offered for some destinations in Greece had reached 85% capacity. Mrs. Springer presented the data during an event called “Dream journeys” on single theme tourism held on April 3 at the lakeside city of Walden in Austria, which was attended by over 500 guests, including politicians, economic and tourist professionals.
Springer Reisen Tour Operators are the top selling group in the region of Carinthia and one the most prominent in southern Austria.
It offers three 245-page catalogues for Greece, which include a total of 16 destinations. New destinations are added each year, with the 2017 one incorporating direct flights from Gratz to the new airport in the island of Paros.
Bookings show an increased demand of Greece in summer, say German tour operators. According to Deutsche Welle, Germany’s largest tour operator, TUI registered a 4% increase in bookings for Greece in the current winter period and the coming summer, compared to the previous year.
Thomas Cook, which is the second largest operator in terms of turnover, also stated there was a rise in demand for Greece, while All Tours said demand for Greece is “very good” for the summer and “good” for Spain.
In addition, the operator noted a fall in reservations for Turkey. Another operator, DER Touristik, pointed out bookings for Greece have doubled in comparison to last year, with a concurrent increase in demand for countries in the Western Mediterranean.
Holiday bookings for Greece through German tour operator TUI are showing a 30 percent increase this year, which not only concerns popular tourism resorts but other destinations too, according to the company’s head, Marek Andryszak.
Andryszak came to Greece for TUI Germany’s annual meeting with Greek hoteliers in Thessaloniki, and told Kathimerini that the two main reasons Greece is showing such impressive growth in bookings are the low demand for neighboring Turkey and Spain’s failure to match its growth in demand with more beds following last year’s increase.
The TUI official argued that Greece has the opportunity to make the most of its real potential as a destination this season, which it did not do in 2015 and 2016 owing to external factors.
Regarding Greek hotel prices, Andryszak estimated that “ this year the average rate will come to a higher level than last year.” He explained that “this will be mainly due to the earlier reduction in hoteliers’ offers than in previous years as contract rates are slightly increased.”
He also referred to the volume of hotels his company cooperates with in Greece, saying that “TUI has the biggest portfolio it’s ever had in Greece” and attributed the choice of Thessaloniki for the meeting with the Greek hoteliers to the tour operator’s objective being “the recovery of our momentum in the market of northern Greece that has declined since the start of the 2000s.”
Andryszak further revealed to Kathimerini that TUI has decided to launch a global pilot program from Greece – starting on Crete – aimed at connecting tourism with the agricultural sector. A series of actions will be targeted, including the promotion of specific agricultural products through the hotels.
The program will be officially announced at the ITB fair in Berlin that opens on Tuesday.
The number of inbound tourists from China to Greece in the summer season of 2017 is expected to rise significantly, according to data.
The projection is confirmed by a notable increase in tax free sales in Greece in the first 3-month period of 2017 compared to 2016. A mere 150,000 Chinese tourists visited Greece last year, a number that is estimated to be much higher this year.
Data released by Premiere Tax Free Greece show that visitors from China are choosing Greece as a destination, reoccupying first spot among the nationalities, as 31% of all Tax Free transactions was covered by Chinese in the first 3 months of 2017. Chinese national spend an average of 330 euros with a preference to jewellery and clothing.
“Russia, FYROM and the US choose our country with great fervour and contribute to a 60% rise in profits via Tax Free transactions in Athens, Rhodes and Thessaloniki”, said Aggeliki Kalogiannidou, marketing manager of Premiere Tax Free Greece.
She went on to add that purchases were up by 109% for Chinese, 65% by Russians, 87% by Americans and 37% by FYROM and Israel, a 200% rise compared to the first 3-month term of 2016. Athens Tax Free is on top accounting for 52% of Tax Free transactions, while Thessaloniki came in second.
It should be noted that two Chinese cultural exhibitions are scheduled to officially open on Thursday, April 27 in the framework of Sino-Hellenic cultural exchange year at the Byzantine and Christian Museum.
China’s ambassador to Greece, Zou Xialoi, said on Wednesday that there are strong ties between Greece and China in the tourism sector during his speech at the Posidonia Sea Tourism Forum on Wednesday. He underlined that there is prospect for a further increase in flows between both countries.
A catalyst for an increase to tourism is the settlement of Visa and the strengthening of direct air links between the two countries. He proposed specific actions that would help increase Chinese tourist arrivals even more than last year’s 100,000 visitors to Greece.
For instance, the Chinese fashion of getting married in Greece is viewed as an excellent opportunity for attracting tourists to Greek islands, especially Santorini.
The Chinese Ambassador also referred to the market of elderly tourists. In China, people over 60 years are estimated at 200 million. These people want to come to Greece to explore ancient Greek civilization.
He also advised that Greece do more to attract student tourism, noting that China’s youth needs to visit the cradle of European civilization.
He praised the joint promotional actions and participation of Greece country in international tourism fairs in China.
Alt. Tourism Minister Elena Kountoura said that Greece aims to become China’s first choice in Europe.
Greek products such as olive oil and wine could have a significant presence in the electronic platform of Alibaba Group, the managing director of Alibaba for Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece said on Wednesday.
Addressing an event organized by the Athens Chamber of Tradesmen, he said that tourism was a sector with significant growth prospects, while products with comparative advantages such as wine and olive oil could also have a significant presence in the e-platform.
He added that middle class Chinese consumers were very interested in international brands and particularly European products and services.
He noted there was a dynamic consumer category in China, belonging to the middle class, young in age and familiar with e-commerce and Internet, interested in travelling to Greek islands and in buying Greek products.
Alibaba’s platform includes hundreds of millions of products in 40 different main categories. Buyers of these products are located in more than 190 countries and regions, exchanging 100,000 messages on a daily basis.
Tourism, Travel, Hospitality, Conservation: News,Stories And Experiences From Allover The World
Showing posts with label tui. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tui. Show all posts
Thursday, 27 April 2017
Friday, 3 March 2017
TURKEY: German Tourists Avoiding Turkey, Why?
Summer bookings to Turkey by German holidaymakers are down by more than half after a spate of bombings, with tourists instead heading to Greece and Egypt, according to German market researcher GfK.
Tourism, which adds about $30 billion to Turkey's gross domestic product each year, has been hammered by attacks blamed on Islamic State and Kurdish militants that have scared away tourists over the past year. Summer bookings from Germany were down 58 percent at the end of January from a year ago.
"Greece is clearly benefiting from that, and Egypt as well," Doerte Nordbeck, head of Travel & Logistics Germany at GfK, told journalists at a news conference ahead of the world's biggest travel fair in Berlin (ITB) next week.
Germans' summer bookings for Greece were 67 percent higher than a year ago by the end of January, and the country has now replaced Turkey as Germans' second-most popular holiday destination after the Balearic islands, she said, citing booking data from travel agencies and online portals.
Tour operator TUI had said in January that it had added around 40 percent more capacity on the Greek islands of Crete, Rhodes and Kos to meet demand.
GfK said bookings for Egypt were up 91 percent from last year, but were still down 23 percent from before the 2011 uprising.
Norbert Fiebig, president of German travel association DRV said hotels in Turkey were responding by slashing their prices, while chains in Spain and Greece were taking advantage of rising demand to increase rates.
Booking portal Holidaycheck said this week that German bookings had shown hotel prices in Turkey were down 12 percent from a year ago and those in Egypt were still down by 8 percent. Prices in Greece were 5 percent higher than last year, it said.
With Germans booking earlier this year, DRV expects Germans' spending on travel bookings to grow moderately, after increasing by 2 percent to 59.8 billion euros ($63 billion), excluding expenses made during their trips, in 2016.
Germany is the world's third-largest spender on foreign travel behind China and the United States.
Tourism, which adds about $30 billion to Turkey's gross domestic product each year, has been hammered by attacks blamed on Islamic State and Kurdish militants that have scared away tourists over the past year. Summer bookings from Germany were down 58 percent at the end of January from a year ago.
"Greece is clearly benefiting from that, and Egypt as well," Doerte Nordbeck, head of Travel & Logistics Germany at GfK, told journalists at a news conference ahead of the world's biggest travel fair in Berlin (ITB) next week.
Germans' summer bookings for Greece were 67 percent higher than a year ago by the end of January, and the country has now replaced Turkey as Germans' second-most popular holiday destination after the Balearic islands, she said, citing booking data from travel agencies and online portals.
Tour operator TUI had said in January that it had added around 40 percent more capacity on the Greek islands of Crete, Rhodes and Kos to meet demand.
GfK said bookings for Egypt were up 91 percent from last year, but were still down 23 percent from before the 2011 uprising.
Norbert Fiebig, president of German travel association DRV said hotels in Turkey were responding by slashing their prices, while chains in Spain and Greece were taking advantage of rising demand to increase rates.
Booking portal Holidaycheck said this week that German bookings had shown hotel prices in Turkey were down 12 percent from a year ago and those in Egypt were still down by 8 percent. Prices in Greece were 5 percent higher than last year, it said.
With Germans booking earlier this year, DRV expects Germans' spending on travel bookings to grow moderately, after increasing by 2 percent to 59.8 billion euros ($63 billion), excluding expenses made during their trips, in 2016.
Germany is the world's third-largest spender on foreign travel behind China and the United States.
Monday, 5 December 2016
TUNISIA: Tunisia Received Over 600,000 Russian Tourists
Tunisian tourism authorities reported declining numbers of international visitors. From January to September 2016, the country’s tourist revenues declined by more than 8% compared to the same period in 2015, and by 34% compared with 2014, announced the Tunisian Ministry of Tourism.
The revenues amounted to 730 million euros, compared to 800 million euros in the first nine months of 2015. The number of overnight stays has increased slightly (14.84 million in 2016 compared to 14.01 million in 2015).
Tunisian tourism had a small turnaround with the stopover of a cruise ship in October in La Goulette, the first in over a year.
Meanwhile, the world’s number one travel company, the German tour operator Tui, announced on November 2, 2016 that it chartered Tunisair planes for weekly flights between Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, and Djerba. Tui will increase its accommodation capacity in Tunisia starting from the spring of 2017 with the opening of two hotels, in addition to the three facilities that it already owns.
Since the 2011 revolution, and especially the wave of terrorist attacks in 2015, the decline of the tourist industry alone cost Tunisia 3 points of GDP. Tourism declined by 35.1% in 2015, by 66% in six years.
After the last year attack in Tunis and then in Sousse, around a million people cancelled their tours in the country. Moreover, some 70 hotels had to close.
Today, however, Tunisian tourism stakeholders and local companies are trying to cope with the influx of Russian visitors – by the end of October there were 600,000 Russian visitors recorded, which is a tenfold growth over 2015.
The country focused mostly on non-Arab visitors like the French, Brits and Spaniards who came to spend their holiday in huge numbers. Thanks to the travel warnings following the attacks however, Tunisian tourism authorities needed to look elsewhere.
The sector benefited greatly from the Moscow’s travel restrictions for Egypt and Turkey, which had been the two most popular destinations for Russian travelers. Now, they had to find some alternative – Tunisia. Visa-free travel and low prices are the biggest draw for the Russian holidaymakers. Local companies expect continuing growth of their numbers.
The revenues amounted to 730 million euros, compared to 800 million euros in the first nine months of 2015. The number of overnight stays has increased slightly (14.84 million in 2016 compared to 14.01 million in 2015).
Tunisian tourism had a small turnaround with the stopover of a cruise ship in October in La Goulette, the first in over a year.
Meanwhile, the world’s number one travel company, the German tour operator Tui, announced on November 2, 2016 that it chartered Tunisair planes for weekly flights between Frankfurt, Düsseldorf, and Djerba. Tui will increase its accommodation capacity in Tunisia starting from the spring of 2017 with the opening of two hotels, in addition to the three facilities that it already owns.
Since the 2011 revolution, and especially the wave of terrorist attacks in 2015, the decline of the tourist industry alone cost Tunisia 3 points of GDP. Tourism declined by 35.1% in 2015, by 66% in six years.
After the last year attack in Tunis and then in Sousse, around a million people cancelled their tours in the country. Moreover, some 70 hotels had to close.
Today, however, Tunisian tourism stakeholders and local companies are trying to cope with the influx of Russian visitors – by the end of October there were 600,000 Russian visitors recorded, which is a tenfold growth over 2015.
The country focused mostly on non-Arab visitors like the French, Brits and Spaniards who came to spend their holiday in huge numbers. Thanks to the travel warnings following the attacks however, Tunisian tourism authorities needed to look elsewhere.
The sector benefited greatly from the Moscow’s travel restrictions for Egypt and Turkey, which had been the two most popular destinations for Russian travelers. Now, they had to find some alternative – Tunisia. Visa-free travel and low prices are the biggest draw for the Russian holidaymakers. Local companies expect continuing growth of their numbers.
Wednesday, 4 May 2016
SOUTH AFRICA: 120 German Travel Agents Visit
The group experienced the destination’s wildlife and nature offering as well as its lifestyle and culture.
January arrivals from Germany were at an all-time-high, with 28 944 tourists – a growth of 21.7% compared with last year over the same period. TUI has also seen a growth of 50% in bookings to SA for the current year. As a result, travel offers and programmes to South Africa have been extended and German travellers now have the choice of 20 itineraries to the destination, of which 11 were newly developed for 2016.
Mathias Tewes, GM Product Management Longhaul East, TUI Deutschland, said the majority of the agents on the trip were visiting South Africa for the first time. “The feedback was very positive and they got good insights and an excellent overview of what South Africa and TUI has to offer,” he said. He added that the products in the programme, which included Cape Town, Winelands, Walker Bay, Port Elizabeth and Addo Elephant National Park, were rated good to excellent. “The agents got a much better understanding of what the destination has to offer.”
According to Tewes, training travel agents to make them familiar with the destination and its diversity of products and regions is one of the biggest challenges to selling South Africa. He says other challenges include restrictive immigration regulations for families; the immigration process at OR Tambo Airport in Johannesburg, such as long queues and the need to re check-in baggage for onward destinations; high demand during peak season when there can be accommodation shortages; and the fluctuation of the rand.
Tewes suggests that SAA should introduce a year-round direct flight from Germany to Cape Town.
“TUI is one of the biggest players in the market. We have a long-standing partnership of more than 20 years in which TUI helped us to unlock South Africa for German travellers. With this group of fantastic agents we kick-start our co-operation with TUI for 2016,” says Theresa Bay-Müller, SA Tourism Country Manager in Germany. “It is absolutely essential to invite travel agents to South Africa. They need to be trained on what our country has to offer and, most importantly, they need to be inspired by its beauty and people. They will be ambassadors forever.”
According to SA Tourism, strong and steady partnerships with the travel trade are the backbone of its work in Germany and familiarisation trips for travel agents are an important tool.
Participants of the familiarisation trip had to qualify by successfully completing an E-Learning programme.
Tuesday, 22 March 2016
ISRAEL: Israel Tells Nationals To Avoid Turkey After Istanbul Attack
A day after the fatal blast in Istanbul last week, Israel's Counter-Terrorism Bureau called on Israelis to avoid visiting the Turkey altogether.
“We didn’t dream of such a terrible situation. I was born and raised in Antalya, we had the Gulf War and even then our troubles weren’t this bad," 35-year-old hotelier Bora Adali, who is currently busy trying to sell his three-star hotel, told the Wall Street Journal. “We are facing a big crisis, and its scope hasn't yet been recognized.
The tourism industry accounts for as much as 11 percent of Turkey's GDP, or $170 billion. Russia represented the second largest source of tourists for Turkey after Germany. The loss of Russian tourism could cost Turkey about $7 billion a year, according to analysts.
Tensions have been running high over the past few months, with terror attacks on the rise in Turkey.
In mid-January, a suicide bomber carried out an attack in central Istanbul, killing 12 German tourists. The explosion happened on Sultanahmet Square, close to the Sultanahmet tram stop and the Dikilitas Obelisk of Theodosius, in the heart of Istanbul’s historic tourist district.
In mid-February, 28 people were killed and 61 injured in a blast in Ankara, when a car bomb, reportedly targeting military personnel, went off close to the parliament building. One more blast, caused by a suicide car bombing, hit the center of Ankara on March 13, with at least 37 people killed and 125 injured in the explosion.
A further five people were killed, and 36 others injured after a suicide bombing rocked the main shopping street in central Istanbul last week. Over a dozen of the injured were foreign citizens, including three Israelis, two Irish citizens, a German, an Icelander, an Iranian and a UAE national.
Irem Aktas, a member of Turkey's ruling AK Party, came under fire after she tweeted that she wished that the Israelis who were injured in Saturday’s terrorist attack in central Istanbul would die. Aktas was fired and her provocative tweet removed.
Aktas' comments were brought to public attention by Dr Aykan Erdemir, a former member of the Turkish parliament (2011-2015).
Meanwhile, Ankara has kept repeating its rhetoric like a mantra, urging tourists to come to Turkey, turning a blind eye to domestic terrorism.
"Turkey is your home. You can come to this beautiful and safe country with inner peace, spend your holiday, and avail of the deep history and beautiful nature of this country. We are ready to host you again with our legendary hospitality we have shown you so far," Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said last month.
Earlier this month the world's largest tour operator, TUI, and German travel association (DRV) reported a 40-percent fall in summer holiday bookings to Turkey, with customers turned off by security concerns.
With more and more tourists staying away from Turkish resorts in fear of their lives, hotel occupancy rates have reportedly tumbled by more than half. Numerous Turkish bed-and-breakfasts and boutique resorts have been put up for sale.
According to the Turkish tourism ministry report, December arrivals from Russia were down nearly 47 percent from December 2014 to 25,485.
Russia imposed economic sanctions on Turkey after an Su-24 bomber was shot down by Turkish F-16s over Syria. In November 2015, the Russian government banned all charter flights to Turkey. Russia’s travel industry watchdog Rosturism recommended that all national agencies stop selling tours to Turkey, citing security concerns. Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) militants were planning to take Russian tourists hostage and use them as human shields, the agency warned.
But Davutoglu said last month that the government expects Russian tourists to come despite tensions between Ankara and Moscow. He also announced an action plan to provide support for the tourism industry, including an $87-million government grant and setting up a facility to allow travel firms to restructure their debts.
Friday, 27 November 2015
TANZANIA: Diamonds La Gemma dell'Est A Zanzibar Hotel Is Happy With Business
A Zanzibar-based hotel has expressed its business optimism in the archipelago as tourism grows in Tanzania.
Diamonds La Gemma dell'Est, the largest property of Planhotel Hospitality Group in Zanzibar, says the business has been impressive and that they have not been impacted by the current political situation.
"The group is facing some challenges in Kenya with our beach resorts on the coast but we are pleased to report that the Zanzibar tourism industry is maintaining its momentum and we look forward to a healthy season ahead," says Maggie Louw, regional sales and marketing manager.
Tourism is Tanzania's largest foreign exchange earner, which generated $2.24 billion in the year ending September 2015, up from $1.96 billion previously, according to data from the Bank of Tanzania.
Tanzania received 1,063,000 tourists in 2013 and the number has been increasing.
The resort recently received Environmental Champion Award from Touristik Union International (TUI, the largest German tour operator.
"We are looking ahead with continued investment, committed tax payers with full sense of utility", said Mr Andrew Cook, La Gemma's General Manager at a function of crowning the group for the only business to meet the TUI standards.
"Our vision at Diamond La Gemma dell'Est is dedicated to encouraging responsible tourism through the conservation of our natural resources and a commitment to educate our staff to make a difference in the lives of others," he adds.
"Through the implementation of various environmental, social and human resources initiatives we are committed to implement responsible and sustainable practices to protect the environment and develop the youth of the future," says TUI service delivery team manager East Africa, Mr Tim Remberg.
La Gemma, supports fully the non-profit organization 'Rinaldo Gasparini Foundation' which founded and manages a maternity clinic in Kendwa, the neighbouring village to the hotel location in Nungwi constituent.
The clinic provides free specialized health care to children from the neighboring areas to improve the quality of life and to enable successful healthy futures.
Diamonds La Gemma dell'Est, the largest property of Planhotel Hospitality Group in Zanzibar, says the business has been impressive and that they have not been impacted by the current political situation.
"The group is facing some challenges in Kenya with our beach resorts on the coast but we are pleased to report that the Zanzibar tourism industry is maintaining its momentum and we look forward to a healthy season ahead," says Maggie Louw, regional sales and marketing manager.
Tourism is Tanzania's largest foreign exchange earner, which generated $2.24 billion in the year ending September 2015, up from $1.96 billion previously, according to data from the Bank of Tanzania.
Tanzania received 1,063,000 tourists in 2013 and the number has been increasing.
The resort recently received Environmental Champion Award from Touristik Union International (TUI, the largest German tour operator.
"We are looking ahead with continued investment, committed tax payers with full sense of utility", said Mr Andrew Cook, La Gemma's General Manager at a function of crowning the group for the only business to meet the TUI standards.
"Our vision at Diamond La Gemma dell'Est is dedicated to encouraging responsible tourism through the conservation of our natural resources and a commitment to educate our staff to make a difference in the lives of others," he adds.
"Through the implementation of various environmental, social and human resources initiatives we are committed to implement responsible and sustainable practices to protect the environment and develop the youth of the future," says TUI service delivery team manager East Africa, Mr Tim Remberg.
La Gemma, supports fully the non-profit organization 'Rinaldo Gasparini Foundation' which founded and manages a maternity clinic in Kendwa, the neighbouring village to the hotel location in Nungwi constituent.
The clinic provides free specialized health care to children from the neighboring areas to improve the quality of life and to enable successful healthy futures.
Thursday, 19 November 2015
Investments In Vital German Market After Sharm Exit
Egypt is set to invest substantially in the German market to compensate for fewer tourists from Russia and the UK and after German tour operators also pulled out of Sharm el-Sheikh.
The German market has become even more important for Egypt after Russia banned all flights to the country and the UK issued a travel warning for Sharm el-Sheikh in response to the recent Russian jet crash in the Sinai Peninsula, which killed 224 people.
German tour operators have now also pulled out of Sharm el-Sheikh after the German transport ministry ordered all passenger baggage on return flights to be transported separately on cargo aircraft for security reasons. The foreign ministry has not issued any specific advice for the destination. In response, FTI, the largest German tour operator to Egypt, TUI, Thomas Cook and DER Touristik all announced on Monday (November 16) that they would suspend all holidays in the Egyptian resort.
FTI CEO Dietmar Gunz said the tour operator and flight partner Sun Express “were completely surprised” by the transport ministry’s decision. “We cannot subject our customers to that,” he said. FTI said there would be no departures before next March, and offered all customers free re-bookings to alternative destinations, including Hurghada and Marsa Alam, or free cancellations. However, like with other German tour operators, Sharm el-Sheikh is only a minor destination for FTI, accounting for about 7% of its total customer volumes in Egypt.
TUI, Thomas Cook and DER Touristik cancelled all holidays in the Egyptian resort until January 31, 2016, and are offering customers a free re-booking to an alternative destination or a full refund. Egypt specialist ETI is offering free re-bookings or cancellations for departures up to December 12 but has not yet decided how to handle bookings for the Christmas/New Year holiday period.
The German market had been performing well this year until the Russian plane crash on October 31. Visitor numbers increased by 20% up to the end of September and tour operators had double-digit growth in bookings for the forthcoming winter season. But bookings have reportedly weakened in the last fortnight.
In response to the latest developments, Egypt is planning substantial investments in the German market. Tamer Marzouk, head of the tourist office in Berlin, told fvw that the tourism ministry is reviewing subsidies for selected charter flights to the country and will launch a new marketing campaign. “We are investing massively to support the important and stable German market,” he said. A new advertising campaign will start as planned at the beginning of December to stimulate demand.
In addition, officials are in talks with German tour operators over the charter flight subsidies that were already extended at the end of October for a further six months. The subsidies are paid on condition that the minimum seat occupancy level is reached and that more flights are operated than in the same month of the previous year. The subsidies vary by airport, with minimum load factors of 40% for Assuan, Luxor and Taba, 50% for Marsa Alam, and 60% for Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh. But German tour operators are now concerned that they might not achieve these requirements if bookings weaken in the coming weeks.
Marzouk pointed out that Sharm el-Sheikh is only a small destination for German tourists, in contrast to Russian and British holidaymakers. “Sharm el-Sheikh didn’t play a big role with only seven out of 150 weekly flights from Germany,” he said.
The tourism chief still hopes to reach the target of one million German tourists in Egypt this year despite the latest setbacks. Last year, just over 877,000 Germans travelled to the country. “Advance bookings until the end of December are good,” he pointed out. This was confirmed by TUI Germany’s tourism director Oliver Dörschuck who said: “We have a decline for Egypt at present. But for the winter more bookings are coming in again at short notice.”
The German market has become even more important for Egypt after Russia banned all flights to the country and the UK issued a travel warning for Sharm el-Sheikh in response to the recent Russian jet crash in the Sinai Peninsula, which killed 224 people.
German tour operators have now also pulled out of Sharm el-Sheikh after the German transport ministry ordered all passenger baggage on return flights to be transported separately on cargo aircraft for security reasons. The foreign ministry has not issued any specific advice for the destination. In response, FTI, the largest German tour operator to Egypt, TUI, Thomas Cook and DER Touristik all announced on Monday (November 16) that they would suspend all holidays in the Egyptian resort.
FTI CEO Dietmar Gunz said the tour operator and flight partner Sun Express “were completely surprised” by the transport ministry’s decision. “We cannot subject our customers to that,” he said. FTI said there would be no departures before next March, and offered all customers free re-bookings to alternative destinations, including Hurghada and Marsa Alam, or free cancellations. However, like with other German tour operators, Sharm el-Sheikh is only a minor destination for FTI, accounting for about 7% of its total customer volumes in Egypt.
TUI, Thomas Cook and DER Touristik cancelled all holidays in the Egyptian resort until January 31, 2016, and are offering customers a free re-booking to an alternative destination or a full refund. Egypt specialist ETI is offering free re-bookings or cancellations for departures up to December 12 but has not yet decided how to handle bookings for the Christmas/New Year holiday period.
The German market had been performing well this year until the Russian plane crash on October 31. Visitor numbers increased by 20% up to the end of September and tour operators had double-digit growth in bookings for the forthcoming winter season. But bookings have reportedly weakened in the last fortnight.
In response to the latest developments, Egypt is planning substantial investments in the German market. Tamer Marzouk, head of the tourist office in Berlin, told fvw that the tourism ministry is reviewing subsidies for selected charter flights to the country and will launch a new marketing campaign. “We are investing massively to support the important and stable German market,” he said. A new advertising campaign will start as planned at the beginning of December to stimulate demand.
In addition, officials are in talks with German tour operators over the charter flight subsidies that were already extended at the end of October for a further six months. The subsidies are paid on condition that the minimum seat occupancy level is reached and that more flights are operated than in the same month of the previous year. The subsidies vary by airport, with minimum load factors of 40% for Assuan, Luxor and Taba, 50% for Marsa Alam, and 60% for Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh. But German tour operators are now concerned that they might not achieve these requirements if bookings weaken in the coming weeks.
Marzouk pointed out that Sharm el-Sheikh is only a small destination for German tourists, in contrast to Russian and British holidaymakers. “Sharm el-Sheikh didn’t play a big role with only seven out of 150 weekly flights from Germany,” he said.
The tourism chief still hopes to reach the target of one million German tourists in Egypt this year despite the latest setbacks. Last year, just over 877,000 Germans travelled to the country. “Advance bookings until the end of December are good,” he pointed out. This was confirmed by TUI Germany’s tourism director Oliver Dörschuck who said: “We have a decline for Egypt at present. But for the winter more bookings are coming in again at short notice.”
Tuesday, 22 September 2015
TUNISIA: Tourists Shun Tunisia After Islamist Attacks
The number of foreign tourists in Tunisia dropped by 20 percent to four million in the first eight months of the year after two Islamist attacks that killed dozens of Western visitors, the tourism minister said on Monday.
Tunisia, for which foreign tourism is an important contributor to gross domestic product, has been under a state of emergency since the attacks. Security has been heightened around tourist sites and high-profile locations in the capital.
Thirty-eight people were killed by a gunman at a hotel in Sousse on the Mediterranean coast in June, three months after 21 tourists were killed by gunmen attacking the Bardo National Museum in the capital Tunis.
The Islamic State militant group claimed the two worst attacks in the North African country's history.
"The number of tourists dropped to about four million since the beginning of the year through to Sept. 10 compared with five million who visited Tunisia in the same period last year," Tourism Minister Salma Loumi said.
Some hotels have closed while foreign tour groups have cancelled some routes, cruises and packages. On Monday, Spanish hotel chain Riu, part of German holiday group TUI, said it was reviewing its presence in Tunisia.
"Three of the hotels we manage will be closed over the winter months and we need to talk to the owners of the other hotels we manage there to see what we can do," said a spokeswoman for Riu, which runs 10 hotels in Tunisia.
Several Spanish newspapers, citing news agency Efe, reported earlier that Riu had decided to leave the North African state.
Tourism accounts for some 7 percent of Tunisia's GDP.
While acknowledging the difficult situation for the country, Loumi said the industry should take advantage of this time to start reforms, including improving the quality of services and diversifying tourism options.
Tunisia has cut its economic growth forecast to 0.5 percent for this year, down from an initially anticipated 3 percent.
Britain is advising tourists against travel to the country after 30 of its citizens were killed in the Sousse attack, in which an Islamist gunman opened fire on holidaymakers as they lounged at the beach and poolside.
Tour operators TUI and Thomas Cook have shelved their Tunisia programmes from Britain until next year, while tour operators across Europe have shifted some capacity to destinations such as Spain.
Tunisia, for which foreign tourism is an important contributor to gross domestic product, has been under a state of emergency since the attacks. Security has been heightened around tourist sites and high-profile locations in the capital.
Thirty-eight people were killed by a gunman at a hotel in Sousse on the Mediterranean coast in June, three months after 21 tourists were killed by gunmen attacking the Bardo National Museum in the capital Tunis.
The Islamic State militant group claimed the two worst attacks in the North African country's history.
"The number of tourists dropped to about four million since the beginning of the year through to Sept. 10 compared with five million who visited Tunisia in the same period last year," Tourism Minister Salma Loumi said.
Some hotels have closed while foreign tour groups have cancelled some routes, cruises and packages. On Monday, Spanish hotel chain Riu, part of German holiday group TUI, said it was reviewing its presence in Tunisia.
"Three of the hotels we manage will be closed over the winter months and we need to talk to the owners of the other hotels we manage there to see what we can do," said a spokeswoman for Riu, which runs 10 hotels in Tunisia.
Several Spanish newspapers, citing news agency Efe, reported earlier that Riu had decided to leave the North African state.
Tourism accounts for some 7 percent of Tunisia's GDP.
While acknowledging the difficult situation for the country, Loumi said the industry should take advantage of this time to start reforms, including improving the quality of services and diversifying tourism options.
Tunisia has cut its economic growth forecast to 0.5 percent for this year, down from an initially anticipated 3 percent.
Britain is advising tourists against travel to the country after 30 of its citizens were killed in the Sousse attack, in which an Islamist gunman opened fire on holidaymakers as they lounged at the beach and poolside.
Tour operators TUI and Thomas Cook have shelved their Tunisia programmes from Britain until next year, while tour operators across Europe have shifted some capacity to destinations such as Spain.
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