Romania is a country with huge tourist potential, but little known to foreign tourists. At least that’s what the specialists in Horeca say. And to blame is the poor promotion of the country at international level, with derisory amounts, much smaller comparison with other European countries.
Romania is a picturesque country photo archive
Romania is one of the most beautiful European countries. It can boast of dream landscapes, an extraordinary diversity of the relief, many cultural-historical objectives, picturesque traditions and a gastronomy that leaves many with water. However, foreign tourists do not pass our threshold. That is, as a series of statistics show, in Romania, out of the total of those who resort to tourist facilities only 5% are foreigners. The rest of the native. Some say that the infrastructure would be to blame, both road and tourist, others that we have quite peppered prices, but not as well.
At times, the speculation would be to blame. In some cases all these findings are as true as possible and are seen with the naked eye. However, Horeca specialists say that the biggest problem of Romanian tourism is the lack of promotion and implicitly the lack of foreign tourists. In short, Romania is an unknown illustration for many Europeans (there is no point in talking worldwide) and Romanian tourism is dependent on local hikers.
“Romanian tourism lacks promotion”
The lack of modern accommodation facilities, a poor road infrastructure, without highways, but with bad roads, speculation in the destinations with stalls, too weak services at peppery prices, were just a few of the problems that marked Romanian tourism and which made it unattractively including for their own citizens. Corina Martin, Secretary General of the Federation of Employers in the Hospitality Industry (FPIOR), says that things have changed a lot in Romania and that, on the contrary, we have what to do quality tourism. Corina Martin also confesses that in fact the problem of Romanian tourism is the promotion.
“First of all we need promotion. The Romanian tourism lacks promotion. Not infrastructure, not hotels, not the services that would put us in line. On the contrary we have very good hotels, we have tourist services, we have hospitality, we have gastronomy, we have a culture, we have a history, but we have a country”states the Secretary General Fpior.
And when he speaks of promotion, Corina Martin refers to the tourist promotion of Romania especially abroad. The influx of foreign tourists is very small about what our country can offer, I confess to Horeca specialists. And this is the cause of this lack of promotion of Romanian tourism, internationally.
“I understand the Romanians who go on vacation abroad because they want to visit, they want to see something else. What I cannot understand, it is why the number of foreign tourists in Romania is decreasing, while in all the other European states it was increasing in 2024. This comes from the lack of promotion of Romania. Television, we will see Turkey, Greece.also states the entrepreneur Călin Cozma, executive president of the FPIOR.
Romania puts in promotion less than 5% of how much Vienna invests only
The representatives of the patrons in the hospitality industry say that Romania does not strive to attract foreign tourists and to make known the beauties of the country, abroad. And this is reflected in the amounts spent by the Romanian state for tourist promotion. More precisely, it is 1.5 million euros. Infim compared to other states. For example, say the representatives of the employers, only Vienna allocates around 35 million euros for tourist promotion.
“Romania still spends 1.5 million euros per year for tourist promotion. While, for example, the city of Vienna, in Austria, spends 35 million euros a year, for tourist promotion. Although Vienna is well. Known, you are not chosen, you are not sought ”says Corina Martin. And the results are seen, only 2.3 million foreign tourists per year. That is, around 5% of those who are tourism in our country. By comparison, countries such as Bulgaria, Croatia, Malta, Cyprus, Greece, but others are based more on the influx of foreign tourists, gaining consistent amounts of this economic branch.
A country with school tourism
Consequently, Romania remains dependent on the local tourists, in the rhythm of the school holidays. “Next the Romanian tourism is based only on the local tourists, especially during the school vacation. Basically, the Romanians go on vacation especially on the big vacation of the schools or on the holidays over the year, as well.adds the Secretary General of the FPIOR.
In addition, in the absence of international promotion, Romania is discovered mainly by curious Western tourists. Their initial perception of Romanian tourism comes to strengthen the idea that nothing is known about our country. “Foreign tourists see our country as much more beautiful than they expected. They come up with very low expectations, I do not know much about Romania. They have the feeling that they arrive in a country where the roads will be bad, not very good hotels and services. And they are extremely pleasantly surprised.”adds Corina Martin.
