Interview: German Tourism CEO Talks Diversity and Trends
Skift Take
Rather than push tourists away, Germany's complicated history - and more recent revitalization - is what draws them in. It's the tourism board's challenge to make sure Berlin and Munich aren't the only places that benefit.
Editor’s Note: Skift is publishing a series of interviews with CEOs of destination marketing organizations where we discuss the future of their organizations and the evolving strategies for attracting visitors. Read all the interviews as they come out here.
This continues our series of CEO interviews that began with online travel CEOs in Future of Travel Booking (now an e-book), and continued with hotel CEOs in the Future of the Guest Experience series (which is also an e-book).
The German tourism industry is celebrating this week. That's because tourism officials announced that international travel to Germany reached a record high in 2014 for a fifth consecutive year, for a total of 75.6 million foreign tourists. Although Europe continues to be the country’s largest source market -- accounting for 75 percent of visit -- there is considerable growth coming from the Arab Gulf states, China, and the United States.
The German tourism market continues to grow thanks to a combination of traditional attractions as well as its growing reputation as an international arts and youth hub. Berlin, as well as smaller cities such as Leipzig, are gaining reputations as welcoming enclaves for young people, attracting a younger demographic than Germany enticed to visit in the past.
The country is now looking to capitalize on its continued growth by drawing repeat visitors to lesser-known regions outside of major cities. The German Travel Market, where press, buyers and suppliers converge for activities and networking, just wrapped up in Thuringia. This is one such region that the national tourism board hopes to help promote through themed campaigns and increased exp
