site.btaBusiness Expects 12 Per Cent Drop in Revenue from International, Domestic Tourism for 2014

Sofia, August 10 (BTA) - The business community expects a 12 per cent drop of revenue from international and domestic tourism this year, Roumen Draganov, Director of the Institute for Analyses and Assessment of Tourism, told BTA.

The reasons for this adverse development include a nearly 10 per cent decrease of package holiday prices in August and the shrinking of Russian tourists' purchasing power because of the devaluation of their national currency.

The negative trend will persist in the summer of 2015 because of the bankruptcy of several large Russian tour operators. Experts expect a steady decline in the number of arrivals from Russia because of the sanctions against the country and the devaluation of the rouble.

Summer 2015 is also expected to be difficult because of the heavy rains this year, prompting negative attitudes in tourists."The number of holidaymakers did not decline this year because 2013 was successful and the tourists were pleased with their stay," Draganov said.

Mountain tourism could not offset this summerТs negative trends at the seaside, he thinks, but nevertheless the 2014 summer season will not be lost and will not end worse than the one in 2013. Accommodation capacity in 2013 was booked 97 per cent, which means a 20-30 per cent growth in tourism cannot be expected, unlike in the 2004-2008 period, the expert explained.

"The tourism industry expects a deputy minister in charge of the sector to be appointed as soon as possible. It also expects the caretaker Cabinet to prepare a register of tourist attractions which are public property, a description of the tourist zones and sites, which will be a condition for the structuring of a separate ministry of tourism. The funds for national tourist publicity for 2015 should also be in the focus of the caretaker Cabinet, with the idea of compensating for the loss of Russian tourists by attracting domestic ones," the expert pointed out

"Over 230,000 are employed in tourism in summer, but these are part-time jobs, which implies problems with professionalism and quality of staff in the sector," Draganov commented. Typically, monthly wages in the tourist industry range between 650 and 2,500 leva.

According to Nelly Hristova, who chairs the relevant chapter of the Podkrepa Confederation of Labour, an 3.5-3.8 per cent increase of the contributory income for low- and medium-skilled workers has been negotiated for 2015.

Podkrepa has not received complaints about violations of labour legislation. "Well-trained staff in tourism leaves Bulgaria because the pay is too low, generally about half the level in neighboring countries," Hristova said.