Thus, some 10,000-12,000 tourists opted for the seaside, compared to the 5,000 initially forecast, although data gathered from hotels has not yet been centralized. The main attraction was the Goran Bregovic concert in the Mamaia resort, an initiative by the Ministry of Tourism.
“I was unable to personally attend the event on time because of the large number of tourists. It was incredible, and I think there have never been so many people at the seaside at this time of year,” Martin added. Minister of Tourism Elena Udrea said she was pleased with the higher-than-expected results of the ministry’s initiative. “This is the first time that the seaside is full for Easter and we hope this will become a tradition,” Udrea told the NewsIn agency. According to ANAT’s President, if it had not been for this initiative, the number of Romanian tourists who would have chosen the Bulgarian seaside would have been much higher. “This event was intensely promoted through all media channels, and we all believed in this project. When I heard Bregovic’s name, I knew this would be a success,” Martin added. Revenues registered by hotels are not known yet, but can be estimated based on an average price of the travel agency booked Easter holiday package, of some RON 250 (€59) per person. “Some of the tourists probably chose to stay with friends or in their own apartments, instead of hotels,” Martin said. The National Association of Travel Agencies was initially expecting 90,000 Romanian tourists for this year’s Easter holiday, a number advanced by travel agencies. ANAT’s President said that the number of Romanians who prefer to spend their holidays in Romania is increasing compared to previous years due to both the economic recession and the recent intense promotion of Romanian tourism.
“Since the appointment of Elena Udrea, tourism enjoys a much more intense media promotion, with positive effects for everybody,” Martin said.The President of the National Association of Travel Agencies talks about a change in mentality at the level of commercial agents and city halls. “[At the seaside] hotels improved their offer, most shops were opened, and city halls were generally receptive to our proposals,” the official added.
ANAT is planning a classic car parade for the 1-2 May weekend, which former Formula 1 pilot David Coulthard will attend. “Some hotels have no more rooms available for 1-2 May. Clearly, there will be more than 15,000 tourists,” Martin estimated. One of the biggest problems of the Romanian seaside is that of roads, whose capacity cannot handle the flow of tourists. “There is Sulfina Barbu’s Emergency Ordinance from two years ago, which prevents us from building parking lots on green spaces, which in turn is affecting the activity of hotels. We are trying to change that ordinance in the near future,” said Martin.
