How Romanians spent winter holidays
About 155,000 Romanians have spent their winter holidays in various resorts in Romania and abroad. Most of them preferred mountain resorts and guesthouses in the countryside.
România Internațional, 04.01.2016, 13:32
Romanians who preferred not to stay at home for the winter holidays have spent close to 36 million euros on New Years holiday packages in Romania and abroad. According to a survey conducted by the Employers Federation in Romanian Tourism, about 147 thousand people have spent the New Years Eve in Romania, a number slightly lower than in 2014. According to the same sources, the end of the year, marked by political, social and economic unrest, urged some tourists to reconsider their planned winter holidays.
The trend of choosing Romania as a tourist destination will be maintained during the year 2016, due to the international political circumstances and the road safety Romania offers. Even if the regions renowned for preserving Romanian traditions were overcrowded, at national level the number of tourists was reduced by 3.5% as compared to last year, particularly in the mountain regions. Not all the Romanian resorts have seen a drop in the number of tourists as many chose to spent the holidays in spas (4% more than last year). Resorts on the Black Sea coast and in the Danube Delta have also reported an increased number of tourists.
Rural guesthouses are most sought-after in winter holidays, followed by hotel packages in big cities. The most popular destinations with the Romanians were mountain resorts in the Prahova Valley, Poiana Brasov, Paltinis, Ranca, Straja, Calimanesti, Felix Spa and the traditional rural areas, Bran-Moeciu, Maramures and Bukovina. Tourists have this year paid higher prices than in 2015, by 5% more on average. Even if they benefited from more days off than last year, few Romanians booked holiday packages abroad. The number of those who went abroad stood at 8 thousand, 5% less than in 2015.
They had to choose from various winter-sports resorts in Austria, France, Italy, Slovenia and Bulgaria, City Break packages in European countries or exotic destinations, such as the Bahamas, Jamaica, Australia, South Africa or Vietnam. The Romanian tourists have shown an increased interest in the Dominican Republic, the Maldives, Mexico and Brazil. According to the aforementioned travel federation, the shifting outlook on money and time management has prompted many Romanians to spare money and vacation at home during the winter holidays, so that they may enjoy more city-break packages and holidays during the year. At the same time the unusually warm weather in December made many Romanians cancel their reservations for the New Years Eve.
(Translated by D. Bilt)
