The Deputy Ministry of Tourism has expressed satisfaction with its participation at the ITB Berlin tourism conference this week, where minister Kostas Koumis led the Cypriot delegation.
According to an official announcement, the meetings aimed at enhancing tourism from Germany yielded significant advancements, including a substantial rise in airline seats scheduled for 2025.
Koumis engaged in productive discussions with leaders of tourism organisations that specialise in the German market and also met with airline executives to boost air connections.
Additionally, he conducted strategic dialogues with Ian Borg, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tourism of Malta, and Dani Shahar, Director General of the Ministry of Tourism of Israel, where they discussed the prevalent challenges in Mediterranean tourism.
“The German market is an interesting market for every country, for every destination, because of its size, but also because of the profile of the German tourist,” Koumis said.
He further remarked on the historical performance of this market in Cyprus, “In the year that ended, the share of this market in Cyprus amounted to 5.7 per cent, which corresponded to 228,000 tourists, while the best performance achieved by this market in Cyprus belongs to the distant 1997.”
In pursuit of further enhancing the German market, the Deputy Ministry organised meetings focused on hosting events and specialised tourism programmes in Cyprus.
These discussions are anticipated to lead to hosting the meetings of the Austrian retiree associations in 2026 and 2027, which typically attract large numbers of attendees right at the start of the tourist season.
As mentioned in the announcement, this year, Cyprus’ stand at the exhibition was significantly upgraded, increasing in size to 450 square metres from last year’s 350.
Additionally, over 50 co-exhibitors, including hoteliers, travel agents, and professional associations, participated, enhancing the visibility and outreach of Cyprus’s tourism sector.
“Our aim in coming to Berlin was to lay the foundations for maintaining the upward trend of the German market, while receiving an update on how our country’s strategic partners assess the destination,” Koumis explained.
He was pleased with the feedback, noting, “Our market partners are pleased with the level of service, the level of hospitality and the quality of the infrastructure, and this is certainly an element that satisfies us.”
Reflecting on the enhanced connectivity with Germany, Koumis expressed optimism.
“In terms of ensuring the upward trend of the German market, we are extremely optimistic,” he said.
“Air connectivity with Germany has clearly improved, with flights from 10 different cities, and an increase in seats offered of 9 per cent compared to the previous year, not including charter flights,” he added.
