In July, about 430,000 vacationers around the beaches of Lake Balaton spent almost one and a half million guest nights at the ‘Hungarian sea.’ This statistic shows that domestic tourism is on similar levels this year as last year, even in the time of the coronavirus.
László Könnyid, Deputy CEO of the Hungarian Tourism Agency told public news channel M1 on Monday morning that compared to last year’s data, domestic tourism is performing similarly this year, which is an excellent result given that the entire sector was “on the floor” in early March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Könnyid also noted that in the last three years the state has spent about HUF 10 billion on the development of beaches around Lake Balaton, which will be supplemented by another HUF 3 billion next year. Beaches can apply to the national program for support between HUF 5 and 30 million per beach – and almost 100 applications will be accepted between September 1st-30th. He added that the support could be used primarily for the renovation of water blocks, but also for the development of green spaces and the replacement of street furniture.
Last weekend, several members of Fidesz promoted the Hungarian sea and domestic travel, and many posted pictures of Lake Balaton on their social media pages following the recommendation of the Prime Minister, who said last month that the key to keeping the epidemic in control is “more Balaton, less Adria.”
In addition to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán who started the trend two weeks ago, Minister of Justice Judit Varga, PMO Head Gergely Gulyás, Fidesz group leader Máté Kocsis, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó, and government spokeswoman Alexandra Szentkirályi all traveled to domestic destinations this past weekend.
featured photo: Balázs Mohai/MTI
