Tourist visitor numbers plummet in Slovakia

Slovakia endured the 2014 tourist season with 7.9% fewer visitors than in 2013, reports data from Slovak Statistics Office and the Slovak Tourist Board. The reasons for the decline in the number of visitors, according to the tourist board, were the weak winter and skiing season, heavy fluctuations in the currencies of neighbouring countries against the euro, and the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. There were 3.7 million holidays recorded in Slovakia in 2014, with 1.48 million of these being tourists from abroad and 2.25 million being Slovak holidaymakers. Most foreign most tourists arrived from the Czech Republic, followed by Poland, and German tourists coming in third place. Despite the reduction in holiday makers to Slovakia throughout last year, the total number of tourist expenditure however increased by €16.1 million compared to 2013. Additionally, last year showed an increase in the average length of stays in Slovakia. The Slovak Tourist Board expects this year to improve overall, pointing towards the country's extremely successful winter season.