According to the flash report of the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) published earlier today, in July 2013 the number of tourist nights spent in Hungary by non-residents and residents was up by 4.7 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively, and thus turnover at accommodation establishments increased by a total of 6.2 percent. Gross revenues at accommodation facilities – at current prices – gained 12 percent. On Monday, the Ministry for National Economy and Hungarian Tourism Ltd evaluated this year’s tourist season and related results at a joint press conference.

Deputy State Secretary for Tourism Dr Viktória Horváth said that although data was only available for the period ending with July, it may be stated with certainty that this year’s high tourist season will have the best tourist traffic figures of all time. Growth was registered not only regarding the number of guests and tourist nights, but concerning the amount of revenue from accommodation establishment charges as well for the initial seven months of the year. In light of statistical data, in the initial seven months of the year 4.8 million guests spent some 12.5 million tourist nights at Hungarian accommodation establishments. The number of guests and tourist nights increased by 6.0 percent and 5.3 percent, respectively, in comparison to the corresponding period of the previous year, while revenues were up by 10.4 percent.

The Government considers the introduction of the Széchenyi Recreation Card (SZÉP Card) a success, as the Card has been stimulating domestic tourism and fuelling the economy. Domestic tourism growth was the result of the introduction of this new fringe benefit type in 2011, and one-fifth of total revenues from domestic guests at accommodation establishments originate from the SZÉP Card. Currently, the 866 thousand card holders are entitled to pay with SZÉP Cards at almost 50 thousand service points, and the number of card holders increased by some 100 thousand this year. Until the end of August, employers transferred HUF 121bn to the cards, a fact that implies the SZÉP Card contributed to the vacationing, recreation, eating out and health of at least 1 million people in the summer high season. In rural areas, the Card is a crucial economic development factor, as since its introduction several tens of thousands of SMEs with SZÉP Card terminals, 80 percent of which operate outside Budapest, have received revenues totalling almost 93 billion forints. Inbound tourism has been expanding markedly; Hungary is increasingly attractive for foreign guests.

In the opinion of Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Hungarian Tourism Ltd Gergely Horváth, favourable indicators for the summer high season are very encouraging. Hungarian Tourism Ltd has made special efforts recently to boost tourist traffic by turning the attention of both foreign and domestic tourists to Hungary through several campaigns. As far as the number of guests and tourist nights are concerned, the sector already achieved pre-crisis levels in 2011, but as data from the initial seven months of this year are signalling, the upward trend is continuing. While last year the sector was driven by inbound traffic, in 2013 the number of domestic tourists increased significantly and the SZÉP Card has played a key role in that development. Hungary’s market potential and the increasing appeal of the country had justified the initiative of Hungarian Tourism Ltd to address new markets and therefore the company has extended its communication campaigns to countries in the East, while it also places special emphasis on targeting potential tourists from neighbouring countries.

The latest tourist traffic data on country of origin clearly shows a market repositioning is currently well under way and these confirm prior expectations. In the first half of 2013, significant tourist traffic growth relating to neighbouring countries was recorded compared to the same period of the previous year, for example in regions such as Northern Hungary, the Northern and Southern Great Plain, and Southern Transdanubia. In Northern Hungary, the number of tourist nights by guests from Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Romania increased by 42 percent, 30 percent, 17 percent and 50 percent, respectively, in the observed period.

(Ministry for National Economy)