Romanian Association Wants All Seaside Cos To Pay Tourism Promotion Fee

„Considering that local authorities faced a harsh slash in budgets meant to promote tourism, and the budget of the Ministry of Tourism and Regional Development earmarked for promoting tourism and organizing related events dropped 50% compared with 2009, we think there will no longer be any tourism promotion activities and related events on the seaside and in the Danube Delta,” the association said in a press release.

Association head Corina Martin, who is also head of the National Association of Tour Operators (ANAT), said the fee could reach 1,000 lei (EUR1=RON4,0682) up to RON1,500 for a club like Bamboo, which, she stressed, equals the amount paid for a bottle of whisky.

Association representatives pointed out that failure to organize tourism promotion events will seriously have a bad impact on prospective tourists who will be reluctant to visit the Romanian seaside and the Danube Delta.

„It was very hard to talk Germany’s largest tour operator TUI into resuming operations on the Romanian market and the range of events for the 2010 summer season has already been included in TUI’s catalogues. Therefore, it is highly necessary to charge a tourism promotion fee, as each economic operator with business activities in seaside resorts must contribute to promoting the resort where it unfolds its business operations,” the press release also read.

The association is a public-private partnership that brings together public local authorities, hotel owners, employers’ association of travel agencies, Mihail Kogalniceanu international airport, the Constanta Maritime Seaports Administration, the Constanta Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Navigation, Danubius TUI and other tour operators.