ReleaseWire

Recovery after the economic downturn continued during 2012, despite previous negative expectations regarding trips numbers for domestic and inbound tourism. Leisure tourism in particular drove the category's performance, boosted by events held locally, with trips and expenditure recording growth. Outbound trips also contributed to the improved performance, as instability eased both economically and politically in Europe and beyond. Slovak tourists also started to slowly discover new...

Tourism flows inbound continued growing during 2012 both in terms of international arrivals and tourist receipts. This came as a surprise to some commentators after the stronger growth in 2011, when Slovakia hosted the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship; it was expected that the number of arrivals would ease off afterwards. In fact arrivals increased, with the event thought to have increased awareness of Slovakia. Other contributing factors are the improved presentation of Slovakia and the...

Tourism in the Czech Republic suffered as a result of the economic downturn in Europe. However, arrivals have recovered steadily, and we expect to see solid increases in inbound tourism throughout the forecast period. Outbound tourism is expected to show slower but still sturdy growth through to 2018, with similar increases expected across other key market indicators.

Charming Asia Tours, a company that specializes in organizing tours of countries around the world, recently unveiled its colorful 2014 tour package brochure to the public. The new brochure will be especially useful to travelers planning vacations in the majestic continent of Asia and is available upon request in digital and hard copies.

We believe that the recent weakness in the Sri Lanka rupee is both a blessing and a curse for Sri Lanka's booming tourism industry. With the rupee now at the cheapest it has ever been against the euro, we expect to see an increase in arrivals from the bloc, which remains the island's top tourist market. That said, the downside of a much weaker rupee is that the cost of major tourism-related infrastructure developments is likely to face some upside pressure.

International arrivals continued growing in 2012, while incoming tourist receipts saw a slight decline. Growth was recorded in arrivals from most of the main source markets.

In 2012, Maribor was European Capital of Culture and a significant number of different cultural and artistic events thus took place in the city and the entire Stajerska region. As a result, the city attracted a lot of tourists interested in the synergy between culture and city development. In 2013, Maribor will host the European youth capital event, which is primarily intended for young people aged between 15 and 29. However, Maribor aims to stress the importance of intergenerational...

The global economic crisis and prolonged eurozone debt crisis presented a challenge for the Croatian tourism sector during the recessionary years of the review period (2008-2012). However, a slow but positive growth in tourist volumes followed the worst years of the crisis. The sector plays an important role in the country's economic development, accounting for 30.2% of the country's total employment in 2012. This has encouraged the government of Croatia to increase its focus on the sector to stimulate growth.

Outbound travel in Slovakia continued its post-recession recovery and grew at a healthy pace during 2012. Since important leisure destinations for Slovak outbound tourist are mainly coastal destinations in southern Europe and northern Africa, the relative stability and reduced negative factors, which were present in previous years, provided stability and a good outlook for outbound tourism development. The key season for leisure outbound trips remains the summer period, when consumers prefer to...

Growth in arrivals to Kazakhstan continued in 2012. Excluding CIS countries, China, Turkey and Ukraine accounted for the greatest number of arrivals in 2012. Simplification of Kazakhstan's visa policy with Hong Kong and potentially with several European countries is expected to attract even more visitors to the country. One of the drivers of arrivals is increasing awareness of Kazakhstan as a travel destination. Foreigners enjoy the country due to its exotic culture and unique nature.

The Hungarian travel and tourism sector suffered due to the financial crisis which engulfed the country in 2009. Although the sector recovered in 2010-2011, the country entered another recessionary phase in 2012. However, the government and tourism promotion agencies have made continuous efforts to increase tourism activity.

Travel & Tourism in France by Mintel Global Market Navigator provides you with annual year-end market size data, most recently updated in 2013. This market covers domestic and international inbound tourism. Market volume is based on numbers of visitors on leisure and/or business trips which include at least one overnight stay in paid accommodation. Market size for Travel & Tourism in France is given in tourist with a minimum of five years' historical data. Market Forecast is provided for five years. Included with this snapshot is socio-economic data for France. Population, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Exchange Rates.

Even though Spring Break is traditionally the annual highlight for millions of university and college students, 2014 is seeing plans come together at a pace never seen before. However, industry experts are reporting a series of new and exciting trends, with young people favoring domestic destinations such as South Padre Island and Panama City Beach over traditional hotspots such as Cancun and the Caribbean.

Destination spas and health and wellness operators need to find ways to replace visitors whose stay was paid for by government health care schemes with self-paying guests. In the light of recession and economic turbulence, combined with the increasing cost of health care, government schemes are reducing numbers sent to destination spas. Companies are trying to attract self-paying visitors mainly by investing in new procedures and higher quality wellness packages, as well as more complex product...

Travel & Tourism in Spain by Mintel Global Market Navigator provides you with annual year-end market size data, most recently updated in 2013. This market covers domestic and international inbound tourism. Market volume is based on numbers of visitors on leisure and/or business trips which include at least one overnight stay in paid accommodation. Market size for Travel & Tourism in Spain is given in tourist with a minimum of five years' historical data. Market Forecast is provided for five years. Included with this snapshot is socio-economic data for Spain. Population, Consumer Price Index (CPI), Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Exchange Rates.

BMI's report on Japan's tourism market looks at a range of key growth indicators, including inbound travel, the hotel sector, receipts from travel-related expenditure and overall industry value. The October 2013 announcement that Japan will host the 2020 Summer Olympics is proving a valuable boost to expanding of tourism in Japan, and as such we expect to see solid growth throughout our current forecast period through to 2018 as the build up to the games gathers pace.

The number of departures remained relatively static in 2012, at 11 million. Number of travelling Romanians getting more mature. Relatively low household incomes and no habits of travelling abroad limits further growth of outbound tourism.

The number of domestic tourism trips increased by 8% in 2012 to reach 2.1 million. This growth was fuelled by several factors. Firstly, Maribor, the second largest city in Slovenia, was European Capital of Culture and thus host to lots of different entertainment and cultural activities which attracted a vast number of domestic tourists. Secondly, the poor economy restricted international travel, with many Slovenians opting to travel to domestic destinations instead. Thirdly, despite the small...

Although faced with many problems, such as a poor and outdated infrastructure, general lack of tourism tradition and clear strategy for tourism development, tourism flows into Kosovo showed growth in terms of number of trips, and a positive balance of payment was recorded in 2012. Because international administrative offices are located in Kosovo to assist in developing the young state, business tourism which includes various bureaucrats, accounts for significant share of inbound tourism in...

Tourist flows in 2012 were characterised by an increase in foreign tourist arrivals on the one hand, and a decline in domestic tourists on the other. The most popular incoming destinations are the largest cities: Belgrade, Novi Sad and Nis. Because of long-standing difficulties in travel and tourism caused by the visa regime for those wanting to enter the EU, which lasted nearly 20 years, Serbian tourists are now generally eager to travel abroad. Despite the recession, followed by lower...

During 2012, inbound tourism flows increased marginally in volume terms, reaching 44.9 million trips.

While it became the global leader in travel retail in 2012 on the back of the continued expansion of online travel, Expedia faces significant competitive challenges. This profile analyses the company's efforts to adapt its offer in light of changing consumer behaviour, the dynamic expansion of main rival, Priceline, and Google's entry into travel and tourism.

As more and more people regard personal wellbeing and relaxation as key factors in refreshing their daily lives, domestic tourism flows showed growth in 2012. The increasing popularity of camping or trekking in the mountains and at the seaside, various waterparks and resorts in many regions, and more convenient transport systems were other forces driving people to take some enjoyable time out with their family and friends.

Thomas Cook has seen an eventful year, with the implementation of a severe restructuring and turnaround programme after the financial difficulties faced in 2011. The company has reduced its brands from 85 to 30 and is now focused on sales in Western and Eastern Europe. While high street stores remain important to Thomas Cook, 195 have been closed in the UK and the company is aiming to increase its online revenue streams. The company recently unveiled a new brand logo and slogan, "Let's go!"

The successful strategy to make Slovenia a highly recognised tourist destination over the last decade resulted in a record number of inbound tourists in 2012, with the number of arrivals increasing by 14% to reach 2.3 million. The increase in inbound tourism flows was a result of several factors such as a successful marketing campaign "I feel Slovenia", Maribor's status as European Capital of Culture, improved infrastructure and visa liberalisation for some former Yugoslavian republics.