The turnover of the long Pentecost weekend also exceeded that of Easter, the number of guest nights was 76 percent higher than last year, 240 thousand guests spent about 450 thousand guest nights in Hungarian accommodation establishments, the Hungarian Tourism Agency told MTI on Friday.
According to the announcement, most people visited Lake Balaton, Mátra-Bükk, Debrecen, and its surroundings, many also came from abroad, mostly to the capital.
It is explained that according to the data of the National Tourist Information Center (NTAK), 69% of the turnover of accommodation establishments in the Pentecostal period was provided by Hungarians. A quarter of the total guest turnover was realized in Budapest, where 73 percent of the guest nights can be attributed to foreigners.
Room occupancy reached an outstanding value on all three days, at 70 percent in hotels on Saturday. 48 percent of guests stayed in hotels, 31 percent in private and other accommodation, 8 percent in boarding houses, 7 percent in campsites, 4 percent in communal accommodation, and 2 percent in holiday homes.
Among the tourist areas, the area around Lake Balaton was the number one destination even during the long weekend, with 32 percent of the rural traffic going here. This was followed by Mátra-Bükk, Debrecen and its surroundings, the surroundings of Budapest and the Bük-Sárvár region – read in the announcement.
After Budapest, most of the guest nights were spent in Balatonfüred, Siófok, Hajdúszoboszló, Hévíz, Zalakaros, Sárvár, Eger, Szeged, Gyula and Keszthely, the announcement writes.
It was emphasized that the international interest in the accommodation establishments of the capital and rural Hungary shows an increasing tendency, however, there is a difference in the field of sending markets. While most people came to Budapest from the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, France, Israel, and Austria, the main sending countries in the countryside were Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Romania, and Slovakia.
During the festive weekend, accommodation establishments posted HUF 6.7 billion in sales, 42 percent of which came from abroad. Revenues of restaurants exceeded HUF 14 billion at Pentecost, an increase of 61 percent compared to last year. On Saturdays and Sundays, the catering stores achieved over HUF 5 billion in revenue per day, which is an outstanding performance.
According to forecasts, a total of nearly 16.5 million guest nights are expected in domestic accommodation in June, July, and August, which is 10 percent higher than 1 year earlier. With this, there is every chance that after the Pentecost weekend of the summer season, the high season will result in outstanding traffic – the Hungarian Tourism Agency informed.
