Russia to Retain Title of Top Feeder Market for Bulgaria’s Tourist Sector
For the second year in a row, Russians are set to outnumber all other foreign nationalities at Bulgaria's sea resorts, newspaper Capital Daily reported on Thursday.
After overtaking Germany for the first time in 2011 to claim the title, the Russian market continues to deliver solid growth, a trend bolstered by the rising number of Russians buying holiday properties in Bulgaria, the newspaper said.
According to forecasts of Bulgaria's economy ministry, the Russian and Ukrainian markets are set to deliver growth of 15-20% this year while holiday-makers from Germany are set to post a modest 5.0% gain.
Scandinavia and the UK are expected to generate tourist arrivals on par with 2011, failing to repeat the pick-up in growth recorded last year.
The main problem for the local hospitality industry this year was the shortened season. Whereas last year the first charter flights started to arrive in April, in 2012 the charter programs did not get underway until late May, industry representatives told the newspaper.