3/7/2008

Bavaria’s Economics Minister Müller delighted at positive start to the year / Over 1.5 million tourists in a January for the very first time

Müller: "A good start to the tourist year of 2008"

MUNICH    White-and-blue tourism has got off to a good start in 2008: in January over 38,000 more tourists came to Bavaria than in the year before. The 2.6 percent increase has presented Bavaria with a record January result of over 1.5 million visitors for the first time. The year also began positively for overnight stays: over 4.6 million meant an increase of 1.1 percent ,or more than 50,000. Bavaria’s Minister of Economic Affairs, Emilia Müller, sees the January figures as a "good start to the tourist year 2008. I expect this trend to be confirmed in February as well, thanks to the Fasching holidays and the spells of fine weather."

The Minister thought that one of the most important reasons for the January increases was the marked improvement in holiday business in the Bavarian winter sport communities, which helped communities with a population of less than 100,000 to record an exceptional 3.3 percent rise in visitors. "Investments in offers not dependent on the weather and in reliable snow conditions are paying off," the Minister commented, referring to another January in Bavaria with little snowfall. Foreign tourists once again proved to be a reliable source of income; both in terms of the numbers of guests and the overnight stays, this group accounted for an increase of over 8 percent in the first month of the year, thus confirming its reputation as the motor driving growth in the Bavarian tourist industry.

Source: Invest in Bavaria