Destination Germany Beats its Own Tourism Record

In 2011, Destination Germany beat the record set in the previous year by notching up 63.8 million overnight stays by foreign visitors. What's more, there were 330.3 million overnight stays by Germans in Germany, making it the most popular destination for German people. The target for this year is to break the threshold of 400 million overnight stays.

Preliminary figures from the German Federal Statistical Office reveal that the volume of overnight stays by foreign visitors in 2011 was up by 6 percent compared to 2010. These numbers aren't the only indication that tourism is important. A recent study funded by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology and commissioned by the Federal Association of the German Tourism Industry (BTW) is proof positive that tourism is one of the most important sectors of the German economy. International visitors spend a total of around €36.6 billion in Germany each year. Approximately 28 per cent of this amount goes on flights, 26 per cent on accommodation, 15.4 per cent on food & drink and 11.5 per cent on other goods and services, including shopping.

"In 2011, Germany again strengthened its position as one of Europe's favorite travel destinations in striking fashion and generated considerable growth from the key source markets", explained Petra Hedorfer, Chief Executive Officer of the German National Tourist Board (GNTB). "Recording growth of around 5 percent, Germany established itself in 2011 as the second most popular travel destination among Europeans after Spain, which grew by approximately 10 per cent. This result, which is based on preliminary data from IPK International, shows that Germany has continued to extend its lead over France, which saw growth of about 2 per cent. Double-digit growth from China, India and Brazil was responsible for our strong performance in the international source markets", added Hedorfer. "Despite the crisis, we anticipate that the incoming sector will grow by up to 3 per cent by the end of this year. The Netherlands and Switzerland – the largest source markets for Germany's incoming tourism industry – will be a significant factor in this increase. We expect to perform well in northern Europe and Russia this year, too. Business travel will also provide crucial impetus. This year will be a busy one for trade fairs, with many international events taking place. Moreover, Germany continues to go from strength to strength as a location for conferences and conventions. As far as green meetings are concerned, the GNTB's global communications will focus, above all, on sustainable growth and Germany's high international standards. We expect the annual volume of overnight stays by foreign visitors to pass the 80 million mark by 2020 on the back of continued market growth and our customer-oriented, targeted marketing activities."

Website: www.germany.travel

Where to Stay: Germany Luxury Hotels & Resorts

PHOTO: Ketschauer Hof in Germany's Rhineland region. Germany offers romantic "Schlosshotels", 5 star city hotels, cutting edge Design hotels, beautiful mountain lodges and more.