Over EUR 60 Million Earnings in Tourism in First Four Months

In the first four months of this year, earnings in tourism amount to EUR 60 million and 400 thousand, which is four percent more than the same period last year. In the first five months there is an 11 percent increase in the number of tourists. This is an indicator that this year there will be a significant increase in tourism as a result of very hard work in the past, but also during this year.

"Ten years in a row we have every year tourism growth of 10 percent and sometimes even 15 percent. And according to the first five months from January to May which were not a tourist season it is obvious that we will have growth of tourism which will be good for the entire tourism industry which employs many people and many companies and families, are living from it", the leader of VMRO-DPMNE Nikola Gruevski said answering a reporter's question.

In terms of flights from Ohrid airport in the first six months, there is an increase of tourists by 83 percent over the last year which is a very serious increase in the number of foreign tourists staying in Ohrid, Struga, Vevcani, but also in the entire region.

According to him, the measures taken on by the Government, and there are many, provide serious results.

"We took measures with which we gave subsidies to airlines in order to achieve greater number of flights to the country. Macedonia currently has 35 destinations connecting with and before us coming to power, the figure was maybe half or more than half as much", the leader of VMRO-DPMNE said.

He pointed out that with a big engagement, subsidies and talks with the companies, 35 lines are opened and they are currently operating on the route from Macedonia to other cities and countries.

"Subsidies have helped tour-operators to carry foreign tourists. With those subsidies for the tour-operators that bring tourists in Macedonia, there is a drastic increase of the number of foreign tourists came back those times when the country had many foreign tourists", Gruevski said.

The government, he said, has invested heavily in the infrastructure, but also in offers for the tourists by building various facilities such as museums and other content.

"In recent years the government has been focused in the development of tourism and the results are not random", Gruevski underlined.

As an example, he said that advertising in the world media give results.