As many as 121,000 visitors welcomed this New Year's Eve at a Romanian tourist destination, by 32 percent less compared to two years ago, with traveler spending on this occasion standing at almost 25.6 million euros, 40 percent down from the same period of 2019, which is a landmark for pre-pandemic domestic tourism, the Federation of Romanian Tourism Employers (FPTR) said in a release on Monday.Unlike the previous years, New Year's Eve bookings were made at the last minute and the length of stay was cut from 5 to 3 nights of accommodation compared to the year before, because the legally non-working days of January 1 and 2 were on the weekend.As a result, many of Romania's tourist accommodation facilities only had a low occupancy rate or were even empty, FPTR notes.The New Year's Eve tourist flow was highest in rural facilities - at approximately 48,000 bookings, yet 20 percent down from the 2019/2020 New Year's Eve.Second in the ranking of domestic destinations chosen by New Year's travelers were mountain resorts, where over 40,000 tourists celebrated the start of 2022, 18 percent less than in 2019.The most sought after resorts were the widely popular attractions in Prahova Valley, Poiana Brasov, the Rucar-Bran area, Paltinis, Ranca, Straja, as well as those in Maramures and Bucovina. A novelty was the opening of Romania's first Olympic ski slope and of the gondola lift in the Borsa mountain resort located at the foot of the Pietrosul Rodnei Mountains.Also, 16,000 Romanians spent New Year's Eve in spa resorts, down 37 percent compared to 2019.The steepest slump in bookings - 57 percent, hit Bucharest and major city hotels and restaurants, causing many locations to close due to the lack of tourists and staff. Only 13,500 Romanians spent New Year's Eve at a hotel located in a large urban center, and the minimum stay was of mere 2 nights.The Danube Delta and the Romanian seaside also saw a slimmer number of tourist bookings compared to other destinations.FPTR first executive vice-president Dragos Raducan explained that with no holiday vouchers in circulation, the number of tourists in unclassified structures has increased.
The 2025 edition of the year’s first major film fest in Europe (and one of the biggest worldwide), the Berlin International Film Festival, took place between 13 and 23 February. My notes come with a bit of delay, as I was also hit by the festival flu that got so many of us sniffling and […]
In the absence of current negative influences, Romania’s economy could have an annual growth potential of 3-4%. Political instability and global geopolitical risks are dampening growth. Economic growth in 2024 was driven by wage increases and accelerating consumption, satisfied however largely through imports. Due to a decline in domestic economic competitiveness, net exports contributed negatively […]
The Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) announced on Thursday, March 13, the launch of a new financial education section on the BVB Research Hub platform, dedicated to retail investors. The capital market operator said that it started this project out of the need to increase the level of financial education and promote the investment culture. It […]
The Romanian governing coalition's presidential candidate, Crin Antonescu, announced on Thursday, March 13, that he is launching a podcast designed to popularize his candidacy before the May elections. Antonescu, who is backed by the alliance made up of the Liberals (PNL), Social Democrats (PSD), the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians (UDMR), and the minorities, stated that he will […]
Some 4,500 teachers will learn about rights and responsibilities online, accessibility, inclusion, online well-being, and ethics as part of Incubatorul Civic Digital (ICD - The Civic Digital Incubator), a digital citizenship and democratic culture project implemented by Institutul Intercultural Timișoara, Asociația TechSoup and Școala de Valori. The project, which offers free training, is aimed at […]
Mihaela Murariu, Attorney at Law at Grecu Partners Business Law Firm, analyzes the impact of Artificial Intelligence on personal data protection. Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a ubiquitous technology, used in more and more fields, from marketing and healthcare to recruitment and financial services. However, the widespread use of AI raises numerous questions about privacy […]
