Cyprus is expecting a record number of arrivals from Romania this year, Deputy Minister of Tourism Kostas Koumis said during a visit to Bucharest.
Koumis travelled to the Romanian capital to meet with senior officials and travel industry representatives following the launch of new routes by Animawings.
According to the announcement, the carrier is introducing direct flights to Cyprus for the first time, operating three times a week.“Romania is a market that has developed in recent years in our country, and this year we are attempting to further expand it,” Koumis said, following talks with representatives from Romania’s Ministry of Economy, Digitisation, Entrepreneurship and Tourism.
He also mentioned that air connectivity between the two countries has strengthened considerably over the past few years, and this summer looks set to bring further growth.
Flights to both Larnaca and Paphos will now be available from seven Romanian cities. These include Bucharest, Timisoara, Cluj, Iasi, Oradea, Craiova and Sibiu.
“Personally, I consider it a given that we will have a new record of arrivals from the Romanian market this year and I estimate that we will exceed 100,000 arrivals for the first time,” Koumis added.
During his visit, the Deputy Minister also took part in an event hosted by Animawings and attended by local travel agents.
The discussions also explored ways to extend the tourist season and encourage special-interest travel, such as cultural, rural and wellness tourism, aimed at drawing visitors beyond the peak summer months.
“We took the opportunity to discuss with our tourism partners our plan for extending the tourist season,” the minister said.
He explained that “the ultimate goal of course of transforming our country into a year-round destination,” noting that these efforts have already begun to show results.
“We make note of the market’s continued growth, along with the increasing interest in operating additional flights, and we are confident of much better results both this year and in the coming years,” Koumis concluded.
