The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) and the Alpine Tourist Commission (ATC) expand their cooperation in 2014

New York, NY, US, 2014-2-6 — /travelprnews.com/ — The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) and the Alpine Tourist Commission (ATC) are further expanding their cooperation in 2014. Under the umbrella of ATC, the national tourist boards of Germany, Austria and Switzerland have joined forces to market the Alpine region as a year-round destination for US travelers. They will emphasize the destination’s draw as a nature paradise, culturally significant and a sports hub.

New focal points for 2014
This year, the participating parties will concentrate on new focal points in their marketing strategy. The goal is to create a link between the mountainous and natural landscape with topics such as city tours, culture and cuisine. Various routes through the Alpine region will act as central connections to link the extraordinary mountain backdrop and the Alpine culture to individual cities and regions, hotels, restaurants and leisure activities.

The focus of the marketing activities is exclusive to the US market – targeting B2C media as well as the trade sector. In addition, ATC will also receive access to the exclusive American Express travel network. Central events with an ATC presence this year will be the annual conference of the United States Tour Operator Association (USTOA) and the Mountain Travel Symposium (MTS).

“For the travel destination Germany, the US is still the overseas market with the most volume. These joint activities within the “D-A-CH” countries, the German-speaking part of Europe, is the direction into the future for us. This still remains true even 60 years after this cooperation was founded,” explains Petra Hedorfer, Chairwoman of the Board of GNTB.

Source market no. 3 for travel destination Germany
After the Netherlands and Switzerland, the US is the third most important source market for the travel destination Germany. From January until November 2013, the Federal Statistical Office registered more than 4.6 million overnights of American travelers in tourist accommodations with 10+ rooms. This represents an increase of 1.4% compared to the same time frame of the previous year. In Austria, during the same time frame, some 1.3 million overnights of travelers from the US were registered; in Switzerland, the number amounted to 1.5 million

About the GNTB
The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) has its headquarters in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It works on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy (BMWi) to represent Germany as a tourist destination and is funded by the Ministry in accordance with a decision taken by the German Bundestag. The GNTB develops and communicates strategies and products to promote Germany’s positive image abroad as a tourist destination and to encourage tourists to visit the country. It has 30 agencies around the world to support its activities. More information can be found in our online press centre at www.germany.travel/presse.

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