The CTO states that although the indications for 2017 are positive, it will take a huge effort from everyone, professionalism, dedication and coordination, to achieve results similar to or even better than those of 2016.
The record, which everyone more or less expected from the summer, is now official: in 2016, most tourists visited Cyprus in its history. The tourists who chose our island for their holidays exceeded 3 million, a number that was set as a goal in early 2016 by the sector.
According to data released yesterday by the Statistical Service, last year arrivals amounted to 3.186.531 compared to 2.659.405 in 2015, showing an increase of 19,8%.
In fact, this is the fourth consecutive year that Cyprus records an annual increase in arrivals, a fact that shows how good work is done in attracting tourists, with all those involved in the sector to make the best use of internal and external factors that push tourism to up.
CTO: "Landmark year"
Commenting on the results, the Cyprus Tourism Organization (CTO) described the year as a "milestone", which "will go down in history as the most successful, compared to any previous one". In a statement, the CTO states that in 2016, compared to 2001, which until recently was the highest reference point, it increased by more than 18%.
The markets
Tourist arrivals from the United Kingdom, the largest market for Cyprus, rose to 1,2 million from 1 million in 2015, an increase of 11,2%, while from Russia, which is the second largest source of tourist attraction , 781,6 thousand traveled to our country compared to 524,9 thousand in 2015, recording a spectacular increase of 48,9%.
2016 thousand tourists arrived on the island from Greece in 160,3 from 139,5 thousand in 2015 and from Germany 124 thousand from 112,2 thousand. There were many markets that recorded record performance, since 2016 is the best historical year in terms of arrivals from Russia (781.634), Greece (160.254), Israel (148.739), Ukraine (62.292), as well as countries such as Lithuania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Serbia, etc.
18th consecutive month of increases
The analysis of the data shows that each month separately, for the period May - October, is a historical record in the number of arrivals, compared to its counterpart of all previous years. At the same time, the increases in arrivals were recorded throughout the year, with double-digit percentage increases in all months of the year compared to the corresponding months of 2015.
December 2016 is the 18th consecutive month in which there is an increase in tourist arrivals, compared to the corresponding month of the previous year. At the same time, the months of June, July, August and September 2016 each exceeded 400 thousand tourist arrivals, while July was the best of all months of each previous year, with 482 thousand arrivals.
In addition, the summer period April - October was historically the highest with 2.722.804 tourist arrivals, while during the winter months of 2016 (January - March and November - December) there were 463.727 tourist arrivals, recording an increase of 23,2% tourist arrivals during the respective months of 2015. The performance of the winter months of 2016 is the 4th best performance in the history of Cyprus, marginally behind 2001 and 1997.
"Even harder work"
The CTO, regarding 2017, in its announcement states that although the indications are positive, it will take a huge effort from everyone, professionalism, dedication and coordination to achieve results similar to or even better than those of 2016. "The euphoria that has been created can easily bring about rest and relaxation, but also restoration or escalation of bad practices.
So there must be great care, seriousness and responsibility. From the CTO point of view, the commitment to even harder work and to continue the multilevel and complex effort should be taken for granted in the new year, which is characterized by great challenges such as Brexit, the dynamic activity of our competitors, the deteriorating geopolitical situation. "and the escalating threat of terrorism," the agency said.
Upward and revenue
Most arrivals mean more revenue, as there is an increase in tourism revenues. Specifically, for the period from January to October, for which there are published data, revenues from tourism are estimated at € 2.228,7 million compared to € 1.977,6 million in the corresponding period of 2015, marking an increase of 12,7 , XNUMX%.
Cypriots travel more
At the same time, the number of Cypriots traveling abroad increased in 2016, according to the data announced yesterday by the Statistical Service. According to the data, in the period January - December 2016, the trips of Cypriots abroad increased by 13,3% to 1.267.894 compared to 1.118.877 in the period January - December 2015. In 2015 the trips of Cypriots abroad decreased by 7,4%, while in 2014 they increased by 8,4%.
In 2016, travel to the United Kingdom increased by 16,8% to 218,2 thousand from 186,9 thousand in 2015. An increase of 21,7% was also recorded in travel to Russia to 58,7 thousand from 48,3, 15,7 thousand. An increase of 539,5% was recorded in the trips to Greece, reaching 466,1 thousand from XNUMX thousand. Greece remains the most popular destination of the Cypriots for trips abroad.
Assembly PASYDIXE
The Annual General Meeting of the Pancyprian Association of Hotel Managers (PASYDIXE) will take place tomorrow, Thursday, at the Hilton Hotel, in Nicosia. According to an announcement by the Association, President Vassos Koilanis in his speech will address the importance of capitalizing on the successful tourism year by strengthening the cooperation of all tourism partners, both in the private and public sector, so that they are strong and long-term foundations for the implementation of tourism policy objectives.
The formal part of the EGS will take place from 8.30 to 11.45 am, while the official part of the Assembly, which starts at 12.00 pm, was invited to attend the political and sectoral authorities of tourism, economy and the state.
Source: SigmaLive