Bulgarian Tourist Industry Reaches Out to the Local Customer

Dnevnik daily, Dec 05, 2007

Bulgarian Tourist Industry Reaches Out to the Local Customer
Turning their back on years of chasing after the foreign holiday-makers, the owners of hotels and travel agencies in Bulgaria are now once again eager to woo the local customer.

The union of tourism industry investors Tuesday announced a 10% discount on the lowest wholesale price for Bulgarian customers that book in the period between January 1 and March 31 a holiday for any of the remaining months of the year.

The promotional initiative comes as the industry begins to struggle with a bed overcapacity in the local ski and sea resorts.

According to the national statistical office, the number of trips abroad undertaken by Bulgarians in January-September 2007 rose 5% year-on-year to 3.3 mln.

Data of the of the Tourism Analyses and Assessments Institute indicates that one fifth of Bulgarian vacationers chose a foreign destination over the past 12 months.