Last year was a record year for Germany in terms of the number of travelers who stayed overnight in German hotels
The majority of travelers within the country were Germans themselves - residents of the Federal Republic: the increase in vacationers and business travelers within the country was two percent, and the number of overnight stays in German hotels and guesthouses reached 320 million. The number of foreigners booking a bed in a German hotel in 2010 increased by ten percent compared to the previous year - 60.3 million overnight stays.
The forecasts for 2011 are also very promising. Petra Hedorfer, head of the German Tourism Board, is confident that large international events planned for this year - the Women's World Cup in football, which will take place in June, and the 125th anniversary of the automobile - will ensure good occupancy for domestic hotels; on this festive occasion, all German car manufacturers promise interesting events.
Germany, which has become extremely popular with foreign tourists, could provide 80 million overnight stays per year in the coming decade: compared to most European neighbors, the number of guests in the Federal Republic is growing disproportionately fast. The current 60-million figure already places the country among the top tourist destinations in the Old World.
The capital of the Federal Republic was also more popular than ever last year: for the first time since records began, over 20 million guests stayed overnight in Berlin, which the capital's tourism industry hailed as a special success. Overall, Germany's popularity has a particularly beneficial effect on German cities: in towns with a population of over 100,000, the number of foreign guests staying overnight increased by 9 percent last year, while in rural areas it increased by only one percent.
The end of the economic crisis brought guests back to hotels: in German hotels, the increase was about six percent, while the popularity of campsites and rented houses and apartments remained at the same level. During the crisis, German campsites - still one of the cheapest accommodation options in Europe - experienced a surge in popularity.
It is worth noting that the official statistics, besides campsites, only take into account guesthouses and hotels with nine or more beds, while such a popular form of recreation in rural areas as renting a room or apartment with a separate entrance in the owner's house goes unnoticed by the Ministry of Statistics. Probably, if the statistics were more meticulous, 'home hotels' would have brought Germany an even faster favorable increase in the number of overnight tourists.
Maxim Smirnov.
"Russkaya Germaniya"