site.btaTourism Minister Dimitrov: "Media Should Assert Bulgaria's Image as Hospitable, Safe Tourist Destination"

Greeting the participants in the 17th World Meeting of Bulgarian Media, which is taking place in Israel from October 1 to 3, Bulgarian caretaker Tourism Minister Ilin Dimitrov said that these meetings provide an excellent opportunity to popularize the achievements of tourism and other spheres of the Bulgarian economy and to outline future prospects, problems and outstanding challenges.
 
"We exceedingly rely on you, our media partners and friends, to assert our country's image as a hospitable, calm and safe tourist destination, as a source of natural and spiritual power, as a place of a strong link and continuity between traditions and present, history and future," he added.

Dimitrov noted that the Bulgarian tourism industry has been doing very well despite the complicated situation in recent years. According to data of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, over 12 million foreign tourists visited Bulgaria in 2019, and 9.3 million of them checked in accommodation facilities, and the tourism sector generated a revenue of EUR 3.7 billion. The sector contributes 10.8% of the country's GDP and accounts for 10.6% of overall employment, the Minister added.

The 4,222,094 foreign tourists who visited Bulgaria between January and August 2022 were 61% more than a year earlier. A total of 244,053 Israeli tourists visited Bulgaria in 2019. After the decline during the pandemic, the January-September 2022 period alone saw 116,000-plus tourist visits from Israel, which was 2.9-fold more than in the like period of 2021. Between April and August 2022, 4,417 Bulgarian tourists travelled to Israel, Dimitrov reported.

Preparations for the publicity and arrangements of the tourist season in 2023 are already in progress, he added.