By comparison, the last year when foreigners spent a similar sum was 2018, when the spent sums amounted to just RON1.9 billion, but the number of tourists was three times smaller in 2021.
Thus, in the first 10 months of this year, around 717,000 foreign tourists arrived in Romania, while their number stood at 2.4 million in 2018.
For tourism operators, 2021 was a better year compared with 2020, but below the level of 2019, a benchmark year.
Romania has never fared well in terms of attracting foreign tourists, so that even before the pandemic their number of low compared even with Hungary or Bulgaria.
Romania has lost significant ground when the entire Europe was locked down, in the spring of 2020. At that time, many countries continued to promote themselves, but Romania failed to do this.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)