Cities and landscapes of Germany centers of tourism investment

BERLIN – Germany is one of Europe’s leading travel destinations, with a share of almost 20 percent of industry value in the European hotels and motels industry. Investments in tourism will be one of the topics of this year’s ITB Asia, taking place in Singapore from October 22-24. Invest in Germany will be hosting an investors’ reception at the ITB Asia to allow potential investors to learn more about Germany as a location for investment in tourism.

Ease of travel is a major reason that Germany is a top tourism investment location. It is both easy to reach and easy to navigate. Centrally located in Europe, Germany has 18 international airports, 40,000 km of rail tracks and 12,000 km of motorways at its disposal. With 33 UNESCO World Heritage sites and 2.8 million convention and congress events per year, plus 139 international fairs, Germany is an attractive destination for both leisure and business travel.

The number of visitors discovering Germany is increasing, strengthening the country’s appeal for tourism investors. In 2007, Germany welcomed 129.9 million guests, creating a stable annual growth of 3.7% after 2006, when the country hosted the soccer World Cup.

Germany has a wide array of tourist destinations. Urban centers such as Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Dresden and Berlin attract many business, as well as leisure travelers. The country is Europe’s number one destination for business travel; there were nearly 83 million overnight business trips in Germany in 2006.

Tourism to more rural areas is also an important part of Germany’s tourism industry. For example, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, a federal state in the Baltic Sea region, saw tourism rise 6.3% in 2007. Other popular rural destinations include the Harz Mountains and the Black Forest.

Germany offers investors a prime infrastructure and a location that visitors for both business and pleasure are finding increasingly attractive.

Invest in Germany is the official inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. It provides investors with comprehensive support from site selection to the implementation of investment decisions. At ITB Asia, Invest in Germany will be present at the German National Tourist Board (DZT) booth in Hall 603, at Stand N01.