Already Over 10 Million Tourists in Hungary This Year

On July 23 this year, the number of visitors exceeded 10 million, with the tourism sector already handling more visitors than Hungary's population, Visit Hungary told MTI on Friday.

They reported that last year, this milestone was reached later, on July 29, according to data from the National Tourism Data Center (NTAK). All this clearly shows that the desire to travel remains strong, Hungary's international appeal is growing, and our compatriots are also happy to vacation domestically.

The 10 million guests registered by NTAK were divided almost equally between domestic and international travelers, with an 11% increase in the number of foreigners being particularly notable, they wrote.

Olivér Csendes, CEO of the national marketing organization, emphasized in the announcement that thanks to developments in recent years, the richness of guest experiences, the quality of services, and the diversity of offerings have reached a new level, and they are able to convey this message to more and more guests.

Visit Hungary's international and domestic experience-based campaigns and new types of marketing activities also play an important role in this success, he said.

The largest number of international travelers came from Germany, followed by Romania, the United Kingdom, Poland and Italy, which attracted the most guests to our country, they said.

Budapest welcomed 39% of tourists, with 14% more visitors arriving in the capital this year than in the same period last year.

In terms of growth in international visitor numbers, the capital is the domestic champion with a 15% increase. Foreign visitors also enjoyed visiting rural areas, with Hévíz, Győr, Szeged, Siófok, and Sárvár being the most visited cities among them.

Most domestic visitors came from Budapest, Pest, Győr-Moson-Sopron, Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and Hajdú-Bihar counties. Their number one destination was Lake Balaton, followed by the Mátra-Bükk Mountains, the Budapest area, Debrecen and its surroundings, and the Tokaj and Nyíregyháza regions. Our compatriots' favorite destinations were the towns on the shores of Lake Balaton and the spa towns.

Most of them spent their holidays in Siófok, Balatonfüred, Hajdúszoboszló, Zalakaros, and Hévíz.