A massive promotional campaign representing Bulgaria as an year-round tourist destination will be launched this autumn in Russia, Germany and Great Britain. Some EUR 4 mln has been allocated for the initiative under Regional Development OP of the European Union. The expected results of the campaign are a 5-percent rise in foreign tourists and a 3-percent rise in profits in the tourist sector over the next three years.

The three countries where the campaign will be held have been carefully selected. Each year, more than 1.3 million tourists from Germany, Great Britain and Russia come to Bulgaria, making these three countries a priority for Bulgaria’s tourism sector, experts from the Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism say. The busiest periods of the campaign will be in the autumn of 2010 and the spring of 2011 when people usually plan their winter and summer holidays and tour agencies compete in offering cheap and attractive holiday packages.

To grab the attention of tourists, Bulgaria will focus not only on traditional seaside and ski vacations but also on alternative types of tourism. The goal is to draw intelligent, curious and solvent visitors who will find their requirements satisfied here.
The promotional campaign starts in October and will finish at the end of 2011, relying mostly on local TV channels, specialized tourist editions and the Internet. Bulgaria’s Ministry of Economy and Tourism will organize trips across Bulgaria where Russian and German journalists writing about tourist destinations will be invited.

In Germany, the campaign will be mainly targeted at middle-aged people and business travelers. These market segments will be reached via printed media, radio and TV programs with an audience of 11.4 million people. Bulgaria and its splendid holidaymaking conditions will be advertised also on billboards in seven German cities. A specialized information center will be set up in Berlin to communicate with journalists who are interested in Bulgaria.

In Russia, the campaign has already started with a special press conference about Bulgarian tourism within the framework of the Moscow Tourist Exhibition. In order to attract the interest of Russian tourists, one relies mostly on electronic media and the airline magazines of Russian airlines that fly tens of millions of passengers each year.

An advertisement of Bulgaria will also be displayed in the Moscow subway where 10 million people travel each day, as well as in the subway in Saint Petersburg that has a daily traffic of some 4.5 million passengers. The campaign will also reach potential tourists in the former Soviet republics such as Estonia, Moldova, Ukraine, and Belarus.

In Great Britain, Bulgaria will be advertised via video on TV as well as advertisement spots and special leaflets in leading printed media. Bulgarian tourist destinations will also be advertised via billboards and posters in London, Scotland and South England.

bnr.bg