Government Focuses on Attracting Tourists with New Developments

The historic Tokaj wine region

In the field of Hungarian tourism, what is needed is not general development, but dedicated resources, Antal Rogán told the Parliament’s Economic Committee on Tuesday, reports Világgazdaság.

The prime minister’s chief of staff recalled that from 2018 onwards, general tourism development has been implemented through the Hungarian Tourism Agency.

Thanks to this, 17,000 projects have received HUF 346 billion (EUR 920 million) in funding.

54,000 rooms, 71 hotels, 14,000 private accommodation units, 636 guesthouses, 5 marinas, and 114 beach resorts were renovated. “Apart from the living waters, there was practically no development project that we did not support if the local community wanted it,” he stressed.

Then last year, the economic crisis caused by the war led to a review of these projects, and those that had not yet started were withdrawn. It is being considered which of these projects can be restarted, but those that are already underway must be completed.

The last time there was a year of peace in Hungarian tourism was 2019, and 2022 has essentially surpassed that, despite the war situation.

However, 2023 is a year with many wounds. American tourists, who mainly avoid the eastern half of the country, are out. This is now starting to recover, but the Middle East conflict that erupted on October 7 has put a dent in Israeli tourism.

This is why Antal Rogán said that

money must be spent to attract more visitors to Hungary.

Dedicated subsidies are needed, and the politician proposed to the government that the contribution paid by hotels should be used specifically for tourism, but in a way that increases the number of visitors, for example for marketing.

He also announced that the government would make improvements in some priority areas. One of these is Hévíz (western Hungary), where the renovation of the airport is already underway and the contractor will be chosen in the coming days. The renovation of the lake is also an important element: the castle is to be restored to its Festetics-era (18th century) state and will be used as a health service.

The other town is Tokaj (northern Hungary), where the range of services would be greatly expanded in order to bring it up to the level of an international wine region and premium category. Service centers would be set up, the main street of the municipality would be renovated for 800 meters, and the town center would be redeveloped. All this would be completed by 2026.

Via Világgazdaság, Featured image via Facebook/Dr. Hoppál Péter