"The figures express what we are currently experiencing. Guests are back and the sorely-missing vibrant atmosphere is returning. That shows impressively that Hamburg has not lost its appeal," said Michael Otremba, Managing Director of Hamburg Tourismus GmbH. The one-million overnight stay figure was broken in August up from 966,000 in July and 470,000 in June amid a huge post-lockdown effort Michael Westhagemann, Senator for Economics, stressed: "It is impressive how our tourism industry is rising to the challenges and managing such a high level of guest numbers in a short space of time."
A steadily increasing number of tourists visited Hamburg in summer with 1.35 million overnight stays in August alone, according to Hamburg Tourismus GmbH. However, figures have yet to reach the pre-pandemic level of 1.56 million overnight stays in August 2019.
Positive balance in summer
Demand rising steadily
The number of overnight stays in the first eight months of 2021 came to merely a third of the pre-crisis level, according to Hamburg Tourism. However, the industry is optimistic as demand in Hamburg is picking up somewhat faster than in other cities in Germany and Europe. Events such as the Hamburg Summer of Culture, the start of musicals and the successful ITS World Congress has meant good news for Hamburg and rising guest numbers. Otremba noted: "Thanks to the enormous reach of our relaunch campaign and numerous communication measures with e.g., Deutsche Bahn, Hamburg has been omnipresent across Germany recently."
Survey - Hamburg most attractive city break destination
Around 27 per cent of respondents would plan a leisure trip to Hamburg with at least one overnight stay during the next 12 months, a recent survey by Appinio market research has found. The city is the preferred destination in Germany. "Our current market research data and talks with the travel industry give us hope that Hamburg will emerge stronger from the crisis thanks to its great cohesion and outstanding hosts," Otremba said.
tn/sb/pb