Tourism Agency: Hungary could boost guest nights to 50 million by 2030

Participating at a roundtable talk on a fresh study by consultancy McKinsey, entitled “Budapest awaits: Fulfilling the city’s tourism potential”, Laszlo Konnyid said the capital accounted for 60 percent of foreign guest nights and that share would be maintained as tourism grew. He also said it was important for tourists to explore areas outside of the capital, too, while undertaking tourism developments in the rest of the country.

In the study, McKinsey says Budapest’s tourism industry has the potential to double the number of international visit nights and double or triple tourist spending. Budapest could cultivate a profile that defines its “unique benefits and experiences”, while encouraging structured collaboration among industry stakeholders, the study says. Budapest could boost visitors from some high-potential markets, such as the United States, Germany, and France, while tapping deeper into source markets where it already excels, such as South Korea and China, with dedicated initiatives. The city could also raise its profile among premium and luxury tourists to boost average spending per tourist.

To draw more business travellers, Budapest might consider hosting more international meetings, incentive trips, conferences, and exhibitions, the study says, while acknowledging the current shortage of large-scale meeting venues. The development of a new flagship conference centre could enable Budapest to host more large-scale events, such as major industry meetings. Budapest could also consider encouraging the development of more accommodation capacity, improving the offering of upscale and larger hotels, with 500 or more rooms, to enable more conferences.

Budapest could benefit from increasing air and rail connections with other countries, McKinsey says, noting that Liszt Ferenc International serves 32 destinations compared to a peer average of 53.