Germany incoming tourism Jan – Aug 2015: record 54.5 million international overnight stays

LONDON, 2015-11-4 — /Travel PR News/ — The 2015 summer holiday season has led to a further record for incoming tourism to Germany. For the period of January to August, the Federal Statistical Office has counted overall 54.5 million international overnight stays in accommodation establishments with at least ten beds, which is 2.9 million nights more than in the same period of the previous year. Consequently Incoming tourism, for the first eight months of the year has shown a further 5.5 percent growth. During the holiday months of June, July and August alone, 27.4 million overnight stays by foreign visitors were registered, 7 % more than in the corresponding period last year. Individually, the UK registered a +12% increase for the month of August 2015 and Ireland showed a +9% increase compared to the same period for last year.

Petra Hedorfer, CEO of the German National Tourist Board (GNTB), sees the latest results as further proof of the increasing attractiveness of Germany as a holiday destination: “According to the IPK, in the last two years (2013 and 2014) the leisure travel market from Europe and overseas have each grown more than 7% – more than the entire incoming tourism for each of those years. The above-average growth for the summer months confirms the importance of this market segment for tourism to Germany. During those three summer months, we generate about a third of our Incoming annual results.”

Solid growth in all top 10 markets
The ten largest source markets for the German incoming tourism all show consistent increases up to the end of August: the Netherlands remains the leader with 8.3 million overnight stays (an increase of 2%). Switzerland, in 2nd place, has shown above-average growth – helped by the currency situation – of +8.6 %. The USA is in 3rd place with a rise of 6.9% and the United Kingdom’s impressive 8.4% rise secures its no. 4 position.

Increases between 2 and 5% follow for Italy, Austria, Denmark, France and Belgium. Spain returns to the top ten with a jump of 18.9 %.

Growth Driver: Asia
While Europe as a source region contributes to German Incoming figures to the end of August with 3.8 % more overnights, the Americas show an 7.8 % increase and Asia 16.3 %. China – with 1.7 million overnight stays – is not only a highly important Asian source market but accounted for a far above-average growth of 30.4 %. The Arab Gulf states show an increase of 18.5 %, India 10 %, Korea 19 % and incoming overnights from Taiwan are 31 % higher than last year. The most important American source market next to the US is Brazil (up 10.5 % to 540,000 overnight stays). The remaining South American countries combined show an increase of 11% to the end of August with the countries of Central America and the Caribbean showing a 20.6 % comparable to figures for the previous year.

– ends –

Media Contact:
Victoria Kyme
PR Manager
German National Tourist Office
PO Box 2695
London W1A 3TN
Tel: +44 (0)20 7317 0914
Fax: +44 (0)20 7317 0917
Email: Victoria.kyme@germany.travel
Website: www.germany.travel
Images: www.images-dzt.de