Tourism – a Chance for the Regions of Europe - Institut IRE

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Peter Straub, President of the Regional Parliament Baden-Württemberg, Mrs. Straub, Mrs. Zimper and Prof. Walter Zimper Vice-President of the Austrian Association of Municipalities and of CEMR were among the guests in Manor-house „Schloss Gwandhaus“. Lambert Van Nistelrooij, Member of the European Parliament, President of the Association of the European Border Regions (AEBR), Jos Chabert, 1. Vice President of the Brussels Parliament, and Mrs. Van Nistelrooij enjoyed the evenings galadinner with live musik from the austrian jazz-pianist Rudi Wilfer. Dr. Andreas Hopf, Director, Central Danube Region Marketing & Development GmbH, Mrs. Hopf, Mrs. Himmler and Mag. Roman Himmler, MBA, Vienna Airport AG, Head of Shareholdings like for instance thermal and wellness tourism or culture and nature tourism. After all Bulgaria offers 7 destinations which are world cultural heritage and 36 natural preserves. “We do not want to be a low price destination any more,” Al-Jebouri stated. Stefan Eder, Regional Managing Partner of DLA Piper Weiss-Tessbach Rechtsanwälte GmbH, illustrated the many different agreements which are necessary when tourism investments are realised. Purchase agreements, contracts with consulters, investors and developers as well as building agreements, financing- labour- and supplier agreements and much more have to be considered. Eder underlined the fact, that one of the most decisive phases is the development phase. It could often take a longer period of time, it is however very important. The precondition for a successful investment is a stable infrastructure. This would imply stable jurisdiction, preventive measures and employment laws as well as a stable economic environment, transportation infrastructure, health care system, training of employees as well as legal security concerning licences. He also emphasised, that stability was one of the most important factors. Investors have to face a great deal of problems like legal security concerning land, the possibility of being connected to public supply networks, delays in finishing building projects that result in extra costs and an infrastructure that is not satisfying. At the end of his speech Eder stated that “Regions can contribute a great deal to solving these problems by reducing bureaucracy and by assisting to accelerate certain procedures.” Markus Lehnert, vice-president of the international hotel development Marriott International highlighted how important it is to take the first step by looking for the right site for a hotel investment. The ideal site could be found in a tourism region, in a central position with good transportation. The chosen price policy and marketing are furthermore decisive for the success of a project. People on business trips and conference tourists should be offered trips where they could stay over the weekend. Marriott can handle 7 million reservations which equal 169 million over- night stays with the assistance of 3,000 employees. Internet bookings play a major role when handling the reservations. In Lehnert’s opinion the 4 and 5 star hotels market is largely saturated. An augmentation in the 2 to 3 star hotels market is predicted and also necessary. For a hotel keeper it is important to be able to run the hotel for longer periods and to obtain a certain continuance. Marriott has 20 years contracts. “Stability is one of the most important issues these times,” Lehnert says as a closing statement. Hans-Harald Jahn, head of the department for Tourism at the European Investment Bank (EIB), underlines the importance of successful and stable agents that manage the granting of loans at the EIB. Risky financial operations are very seldom supported. The EIB grants long-term loans for investments in infrastructure projects with 3 to 5 repayment-free years and up to 20 years with fixed interest rates. Summarising the situation Jahn said, that in the year 2005 the EIB issued loans of EUR 34 billions for regional development, EUR 10.7 billions for innovation, EUR 4.3 billions for small and medium-sized businesses also in tourism. Mrs. Esencan Trezibasoglu of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Bureau for Destination Management, assesses the prospects for Europe in 2006 in terms of tourism very positively. The football world championship, the boom in cultural tourism (250th anniversary of the birth of Mozart) and the increase of cruises in the Adriatic region support these expectations. “Local and regional actors play an increasingly important role in destination management”, emphasises Mrs. Terzibasoglu. Despite terrorism and catastrophes, 2005 had been a good year for Europe with 808 million arrivals (i.e. plus 42 million). The expert forecast China and Russia on the rise, a fact that has to be taken in consideration in all marketing plans. In the following, the participants had the chance to discuss and exchange their views in four working groups. Mr. Edgar Rosenmayer, Managing Director, Immofinanz AG moderated the working group on “Investment in Tourism Real Estate and Accommodation Facilities in Europe” which was sponsored by Immofinanz Immobilien Anlagen AG. Mr. Ulrich Zacherl, Director of the Di- 8 irenews 6 / nov06
vision for Finance and Tourism of the sponsor Investkredit Bank AG, was head of the working group “Financing of Touristic Projects”. The Director for Investments, Mr Roman Himmler, MBA of the sponsor Vienna Airport AG headed the working group “Arrival and Local Mobility in Tourism Destinations“. Mr. Leo Bauernberger, CEO of the sponsoring Salzburger Land Tourismus GmbH, moderated the round table “Destinationsmanagement – Technologien im Tourismus (e-tourism)” (“Destination Management – Technologies in Tourism (e-tourism)”). The conference was closed with a Gala-evening which gave the opportunity to get in contact with other participants and provided entertainment in a laid back atmosphere. Kindly supported by: Kindly sponsored by: irenews 6 / nov06 9
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Tourism – a Chance for the Regions of Europe - Institut IRE

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