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Industry must capitalise on EU enlargement
The enlargement of the EU will boost Europe’s tourism industry, but growth will be hindered if the EU doesn’t establish a central strategy, says the World Tourism Organisation (WTO). The WTO has highlighted Prague, Budapest, Krakow and Ljubljana as cities that will become increasingly popular for short breaks following the enlargement of the EU on 1 May. Many of these cities are already enjoying a boost in visitors, particularly as they become better connected with western Europe through the no-frills airline network. Prague was the subject of a recent splurge of route announcements from easyJet and bmibaby. But other routes like Budapest and Ljubljana are also now hotly contested. Commenting on the rise of no-frills airlines, WTO secretary-general, Francesco Frangialli said: “The liberalization of civil aviation is positive for consumers and for tourism as an industry. It has enabled “low-cost carriers” to enter the market, forcing the major airlines to adapt their structures and reduce costs.” Full service airlines are also keen to improve connections with countries joining the EU. British Airways is launching services to Prague, Budapest and Bratislava from Gatwick on March 28 and Austrian Airlines launches daily flights to Bratislava from Gatwick on May 1. Travel won’t be in one direction – WTO says the countries joining the EU on 1 May will also act as tourism generating markets. These countries are Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Malta and Cyprus. Mr Frangialli says the growth of countries including Croatia and Bulgaria as tourism destinations is largely due to holidaymakers from countries like Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. But WTO warns that without a “central strategic vision on tourism”, the EU will hinder growth of the tourism industry. This means both co-operation and competition between states. Mr Frangialli said: “Increased competition stimulates growth, productivity and ultimately welfare, and the winners in tourism will be those countries with the most tourism-relevant resources, skills and networks that succeed in creating new potential and exploiting it.” According to WTO, European Commission puts the value of the tourist industry at 5% of the EU’s GDP, representing 2.2 million enterprises and 7.7 million jobs. Report by Ginny McGrath
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