When travelling, the attitude of the natives can seriously affect how much you enjoy your stay. A warm welcome can boost your spirits and help you feel at home, whereas a frosty reception will have you feeling homesick before you’ve even spent a night in your host country, The Richest web portal reports.
If a nationality gains a reputation for being particularly warm and welcoming – or conversely, particularly hostile to foreigners – it can have marked influence on the nation’s tourism industry.
In a report released earlier this month, the World Economic Forum ranked 140 countries in order of their hospitality towards international travelers, placing Macedonia on the respectable 4th place.
“Macedonia is a desirable holiday spot, teeming with cultural and geographical attractions. Its steep mountains make it perfect for hiking, skiing and climbing, while its ancient ruins and monasteries will fascinate history buffs. It boasts a rich history of art, architecture, music and poetry and holds many annual festivals. Just as much of a draw, however, is the hospitality of its people, said to be some of the warmest in the world,” says the short description of the country.
Using data compiled from an annual World Economic Forum survey, a numerical value was assigned to each country, with Macedonia ranking 6.7 out of 7.
The best ranked country from neighbors is Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was ranked at 8th place, and the worst ranked is Bulgaria, which is on the list of the most unwelcoming states, i.e. on the 132 place.
The title of most welcoming country was claimed by Iceland with a ranking of 6.8 out of 7.
“Iceland’s chilly climate contrasts strongly with the warmth of its folk. Though its landscape is undoubtedly awe-inspiring, full of blazing volcanoes and gushing geysers, a trip to Iceland is as much about the people you meet as the sights you see. According to the Lonely Planet, travelers to the country should expect “complimentary cakes and cookies, friendly intellectual banter, invites to pub crawls, eager hiking buddies and 50 new Facebook friends when you return home”. Sounds good!,” says the intro describing Iceland.
Seven of WEF's top ten friendliest countries were new in 2013.
The report also ranked the countries least friendly towards foreigners. Bolivia gained the dubious distinction of least welcoming among those surveyed, and was joined in the bottom ten by Venezuela, Russia, Kuwait, Iran, and Pakistan, among others.
The rankings were included in the Forum's Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2013, which was released in March and gauges the health of the international tourism industry through a variety of metrics.
It is important to note that WEF's ranking of friendliness towards foreigners does not actually take into account the opinions of any foreigners. The rankings are based on an Executive Opinion Survey distributed to business leaders in 140 countries, who are asked to rank their own countries on such topics as infrastructure, environmental sustainability, and economic policy. For this particular ranking, those surveyed were asked "How welcome are foreign visitors in your country?"
Due to its reliance on the Executive Opinion Survey, the Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report reveals as much about the general perceptions of the business class in different countries as it does about the actual conditions present.
Folge uns