In spite of the difficulties due to the lack of snow, as all across Europe, Bulgaria's winter resorts handled the slopes successfully and reported 1.4 million tourist check-ins, or 28% more than in 2022 and 5% over the figure in the prepandemic 2019, Bulgarian Tourism Minister Ilin Dimitrov said on Monday's "The Day Begins" show on Bulgarian National Television (BNT). That was precisely what the caretaker cabinet wanted to achieve in the field, to regain previous levels, and if conditions continue until the end of March the figures will be even better, he added. According to Bulgarian News Agency (BNA), the Bulgarians account for some 70% of the tourists in the winter resorts, with the country's tourism market offering "a choice for every pocket", both high-class and low-budget hotels, with a very good price/quality ratio. Dimitrov thinks that Bulgaria has a wide spectrum of hotels and also noted that spa tourism has increased by 18% year-on-year. The Bulgarian Ministry expects some 4.7 million tourists for the summer season, of 2% to 3% more than in 2019. About 1.2 million are expected to come from Romania and advertisement in Poland and Czechia has been very strong so Dimitrov is optimistic and forecasts a year with results better than in the prepandemic one. Last week, Bulgaria participated in the ITB Berlin 2023 international tourism fair at Messe Berlin where the Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA) presented two exceedingly prestigious awards to Bulgaria and to Bulgarian Tourism Minister Ilin Dimitrov, Dimitrov's Ministry said in a press release. This country was named Destination of the Year - Balkan Region, and Dimitrov was distinguished as Tourism Minister of the Year - Balkan Region. Dimitrov also had a series of meetings with representatives of the largest tour operators on the German market.
