Hungarian tourism skyrocketing again!

July 24 was one of the most outstanding days in the history of Hungarian tourism. Nearly 150 thousand guests stayed in Hungary on this day. This trend is expected to continue in August. Formula 1 has helped the Hungarian capital a lot in this way, but basically, rural hotels are more popular. On average, 75 per cent of rural hotel rooms were reserved. However, bookings were reportedly over 98 per cent in some locations.

By the end of July, domestic tourists had spent a total of HUF 103 billion (€292 million) on accommodation in Hungary. That is nearly 20 per cent more than last year. In addition to the money spent, the number of guest nights also increased. 

The most popular places are Sopron, Debrecen, Szeged, Tokaj, and Gyula.

It may come as a surprise that the Hungarian capital performed less well. “Domestic tourists don’t really want to come to Budapest, despite the advertisements. It is a very serious challenge for the Metropolitan Municipality and the Hungarian Tourism Agency to figure out the reason why it is not possible to attract rural people to the capital,” said Zoltán Guller, the CEO of the Hungarian Tourism Agency.

For the Germans, Lake Balaton and its surroundings were the most popular. In addition to Lake Balaton, many Polish people came to Debrecen and the Mátra-Bükk region, while the Czechs travelled mainly to Lake Balaton and Sárvár. Slovak tourists spent the most, and they were the ones who showed up in most parts of the country.

According to the July data, in 2021, Lake Balaton will be more popular on weekdays than at the weekend.

The primary reason for this is that weekend accommodation prices are significantly higher. Guller notes that high tourist traffic is expected to remain in August as well. The average occupancy rate in rural hotels is 75 per cent. This can be over 90 per cent for some hotels, writes portfolio.hu. The top 10 Hungarian destinations are Siófok, Hajdúszoboszló, Budapest, Balatonfüred, Eger, Hévíz, Gyula, Szeged, Zalakaros, Pécs.

The most popular areas are Lake Balaton and Northern Hungary.

Compared to last year’s level, there is an upward trend in both the money spent and the nights spent. However, the pre-epidemic period is still a long way off. In Budapest, tourism revenues increased significantly during the Formula 1 weekend. They can expect a similar spike during the August 20 celebrations of St. Stephen, writes Népszava.

• Hungarian tourism is picking up again!
• Hungarian inland tourism broke record, economy showing signs of strong growth!

Source: portfolio.hu, népszava.hu