Romanians spend more as tourists abroad than foreign tourists spend in Romania

Revenues from international tourism are expected to rise steadily over the next 12 years, from 1.59 billion lei in 2025 to 2.99 billion euros in 2035, given that Romanians spend more as tourists abroad than foreign tourists spend in Romania, according to the National Strategy of Romania for the development of tourism, launched on Thursday in public consultation.

The number of international tourist arrivals is estimated to increase to 2.8 million in 2025, to reach 3.6 million in 2030, and 4.6 million in 2035, from 843,000 in 2021.

According to data from the National Institute of Statistics, cited in the Strategy, in 2021, receipts from international tourism amounted to approximately 400 million euros, 72.5% less than in 2019. The average amount spent by a foreign tourist remained relatively constant during 2019-2020, but decreased by 11.5% in 2021 compared to 2019.

On the other hand, the document shows that Romanians spend more as tourists abroad than foreign tourists spend in Romania. In 2021, according to data provided by the National Bank of Romania, the difference amounted to 1.67 billion euros, representing 9.9% of Romania’s balance of payments deficit.

“The increase in foreign tourist arrivals in the period (2022-2025) is forecast at 35% per year (the recovery period after the pandemic), and for each of the following years (2026-2035) an increase of 5% has been estimated. On average, 14 tourists generate a job in Romania. When estimating the increase in the labor force, this ratio was respected. It has been proven that an increase in spending is not always doubled by an increase in the number of tourists, because with a larger number of arrivals, more diverse groups arrive in the country, and if there are better facilities and increased accessibility, more domestic tourists travel to the interior of the country. When estimating the expenditure projections, a moderate increase in the average expenditure per tourist was anticipated”, the Strategy states.

According to the analysis that formed the basis of the strategy, in 2021 the average stay was 2.2 days, both for international arrivals and for domestic tourists.

 “Such a short duration shows that Romania has an acute need to develop its services and products to allow tourists to spend more time at the destination and thus contribute significantly to the economy. The average stay has been in a process of depreciation over the past decade. This evolution is determined by the change in consumption behavior, because more and more Romanians spend longer holidays abroad and shorter ones in the country. The decrease in the average stay spent at the destination results in lower spending by domestic tourists. Moreover, more than half of them spend their vacations in coastal or mountainous areas and, therefore, it is important to diversify the offers in order to be able to respond to the growing need of the local market to retain the expenses generated by tourists in the country, in order to ensure a balance national positive payments”, states the quoted source.

After analyzing the data from the Competitiveness Index for Tourism and Travel and the areas in which Romania has a competitive advantage and development potential compared to other competing countries, and taking into account the current development trends of the tourism industry and “visiting experiences “, the authors of the Strategy argue that Romania must focus on four main segments in order to continue to attract higher spending from foreign tourists and to increase the average length of their stay in Romania. It is about cultural heritage, cultural and historical tourism (together with gastronomy), nature and adventure, including ecotourism and rural tourism, health and wellness, with an emphasis on Romania’s rich spa resources, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) – meeting tourism, incentives, conferences, exhibitions.