“Half of the spa resorts in Romania currently depend on rest and treatment vouchers offered by the National Pensions House, which ensures a small profit margin but doesn’t leave any room for investments. On the other hand, employers in this sector that have made considerable investments are registering losses due to the high interests they pay on their loans,” said Nicu Radulescu, head of the employers association for spa resort tourism OPTBR.
He said this situation keeps investors at bay, especially since the state has not granted any incentives to compensate for losses in the spa sector.
“A 100-room hostel that cost EUR7 million to upgrade from two to four stars and which has registered losses in the past 2-3 years has to pay local taxes of about EUR100,000 a year,” he explained, adding that while the Tourism Ministry’s plan to offer state aid to hotels in seaside resorts, the state should show more support for spa resorts.
“The spa sector has an inexhaustible social component and some of the mineral resources we have in Romania are found nowhere else in the world. State aid should be extended to this sector as well. The vacation voucher law is a good measure but it is not enough to fix the problems in the spa sector,” said Radulescu.
He added the ministry has failed to promote Romanian spa tourism.
Romanian spa resorts host nearly one million tourists each year, of which 8-10% are foreign.