Editorial

centrope newsletter

Editorial - A huge potential as tourism region

In the wake of the financial and economic crisis, tourism in CENTROPE is resurging again. While city tourism in Vienna and Bratislava has seen a double-digit rise in overnight stays in the first nine months of 2010, mainly driven by international visitors, other CENTROPE partner regions, too, can count on steadily rising numbers. But there is a lesson in the crisis as well: regional and daytrip tourism has proven particularly resilient during the economic slowdown, as people have turned to affordable and well-known offers nearby.

Intra-regional tourism thus represents a great opportunity for economic growth and the creation of new jobs, as much as it is a means of bringing together the citizens of the CENTROPE partner regions. City and culture tourism, outdoor recreation and wellness all feature large in the spectrum of tourism products available to the CENTROPE cross-border hopper. However, much will depend on the ability of the tourism sector to retain (or achieve) a competitive edge with regard to quality, value for money and variety if strong internal visitor flows are to develop into a hallmark of transnational integration in the Central European Region.

New target groups are also emerging and represent both an opportunity and challenge to adapt existing products. Gone are the times when many offers and products were almost obsessed with targeting the young, and families have also come to represent a smaller share of an increasingly diversified tourism market. Conversely, as a consequence of demographic change, the elderly – the “best agers” – will become highly interesting clients for CENTROPE in the near future, with a strong demand for products and offers from the lower price categories up to the top-of-the-range luxury segment. In this area, no less than in all other sectors of domestic CENTROPE tourism, easily accessible information in all four languages is an absolute precondition for tapping into new potentials. The brand-new online platform mycentrope.com is much more than just a portal to the region: it is a fully-fledged tool for the explorer to organise, book and actually win her or his trip to CENTROPE.

Hovering over it all, however, are the potentially devastating effects of climate change to tourism as we know it – be it in form of staggering environmental damage caused by transport emissions or disappearing winter sports possibilities. Sustainable tourism has therefore become the new imperative, and dedicated eco-tourism represents an important way of drawing an eco-conscious clientele into a region.

Autumn is a splendid time to indulge in the natural, cultural and culinary treats of CENTROPE. Join us on a tour that brings out the best of traditional cuisine and winemaking, which, unsurprisingly, is remarkable similar across the entire region.

Your CENTROPE Agency Team