Frankfurt am Main/Berlin, 6 March 2013 - At the 2013 Green Meetings & Events conference organised by the German Convention Bureau (GCB) and the European Association of Event Centres (EVVC), Petra Hedorfer, Chief Executive Officer of the German National Tourist Board (GNTB) announced the latest results for inbound tourism in Germany. The conference in Darmstadt was opened in the presence of its patron Peter Altmaier, Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, on 26 February 2013.

Germany is the no. 1 destination for business travel

The business travel segment in particular saw huge growth last year. According to provisional figures from IPK International and the World Travel Monitor (WTM), the volume of business trips made by Europeans to Germany in 2012 rose to almost 13 million, an increase of 12.3 per cent on the previous year. "This ensured that Germany remained the top-ranked business travel destination for Europeans in 2012, an outstanding result and a sign of the economic strength of our country," says Ernst Burgbacher, Member of the German Parliament, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology and Federal Government Commissioner for SMEs and Tourism. During the same period, the volume of international business trips undertaken by Europeans rose by 7 per cent.

Special mention should be made of the positioning of Destination Germany as a destination for promotable business trips. Almost half of the total volume of business travel is made up of promotable business trips (meetings, incentives, conferences & events (MICE) and trade fairs). "The number of promotable business trips to Germany made by Europeans rose by 16.5 per cent to more than six million in 2012, making this a hugely significant engine of growth for inbound travel to Germany," says Petra Hedorfer.

Matthias Schultze, managing director of the German Convention Bureau added: "Destination Germany is the market leader for sustainability and green meetings. We encourage and support the activities of the conference and convention venues in matters of sustainability. Hosting the 2013 Green Meetings & Events conference represented a key step in this direction."

Germany  the  second  most  popular  destination  for  Europeans  -  strong  growth  in holiday travel

Germany is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe. In 2012, for the third year in succession, Germany was the second most popular destination for European travellers, notching up 46.2 million visits. In first place with 49 million trips was Spain - France followed in third place with 36 million trips. The volume of trips made by Europeans to Germany rose by an impressive 8.2 per cent in 2012, far higher than the equivalent year-on-year increase in the volume of international outbound travel by Europeans (1.9 per cent). In absolute terms the volume of trips abroad made by Europeans in 2012 rose by 7.9 million. Encouraging signs for Germany: almost half of these trips (44 per cent) were to German destinations, whether towns, cities or regions. Growth was particularly strong in the business travel segment, but also in the number of holiday trips made by Europeans to Germany, which went up by an impressive 6 per cent.

Germany is Europeans' no. 1 destination for cultural travel

Germany is also extremely popular as a cultural destination for European travellers and its market share of 12 per cent secured it the number one spot in this category for 2012, according to the European Travel Monitor. Germany's culture is proving most popular with its direct European neighbours. In a survey conducted by the GNTB and IPK International, places of historical interest were a key travel motivation for 72 per cent of visitors from Switzerland, and also for guests from neighbouring Austria. Similarly, around half of the visitors from the Netherlands and the UK associate Germany with having a wealth of history and historical attractions. For many potential travellers, Germany's 37 UNESCO World Heritage sites provide a motivation for cultural trips.

About the GNTB

The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) has its headquarters in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. It works on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi) to represent Germany as a tourist destination and is funded by the Ministry in accordance with a decision taken by the German Bundestag. The GNTB develops and communicates strategies and products to promote Germany's positive image abroad as a tourist destination and to encourage tourists to visit the country. It has 30 agencies around the world to support its activities. More information can be found in our online press centre at www.germany.travel/presse.