Lake Balaton was the most popular Hungarian travel destination in August

The number of guest nights at commercial accommodations in Hungary fell by an annual 33.2 percent to 3,136,000 in August as the pandemic continued to impact the tourism industry, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Wednesday.

The number of guest nights spent by domestic travellers fell by 2.1 percent to 2,530,000, while those spent by foreign visitors plunged by 71.3 percent to 607,000.

Hungarians spent 914,000 guest nights in the area around Lake Balaton, making it the most popular travel destination in August.

Revenue of commercial accommodations fell by 32.6 percent to 47 billion forints (EUR 130.4m) in August from the same month a year earlier.

For the period January-August, the number of guest nights at commercial accommodations dropped by 51.2 percent in annual comparison, to 10,902,000. The number of guest nights spent by domestic travellers fell by 34.7 percent to 7,557,000 and the number spent by foreigners slipped by 68.9 percent to 3,344,000.

Revenue of commercial accommodations dropped by 50.8 percent to 183 billion forints in January-August.

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“Without the tourism in Budapest, tourism in Hungary cannot exist,”

said Tamás Flesch, president of Hungarian Hotel and Restaurant Association, commented in the online news portal Telex.

“Half of the revenues are generated here, 90 percent of the visitors are foreign, this cannot be replaced.”

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Source: MTI