By IRNA,
Berlin : The number of German tourists visiting Iran this year has increased by a whopping 91 percent, dpa cited a leading German tour operator as saying Thursday.
The Munich-based Studiosus Reisen Travel Agency which is the largest tour operator of culture and nature special interest group tours in Germany, said Iran has become the top destination for German tourists in the Middle East.
Studiosus is in charge of the travel arrangements of more than 100,000 tourists every year.
In other related news, Germans are expected to remain world travel champions in 2008, according to various press reports.
The number of package holiday tours rose 3.5 percent to reach a record level of more than 83 million.
The German Travel Association (DRV) reported earlier that 72 percent of Germans are planing to take a trip for at least five days.
German tourism turnover is expected to surpass the 30-billion euro mark in 2008.
According to DRV, around 30.2 million Germans spent their vacation in Germany last year, while nine million Germans travelled to Spain, seven million to Italy, 5.7 million to Austria and 4.1 million to Turkey.
These countries have remained the favorite travel destinations for Germans over the past decades and even a wave of terrorist attacks in Spanish and Turkish holiday resorts did not really influence the decision of Germans to visit those countries.
Whole tourist resorts like the Spanish island of Mallorca or Turkey’s Antalya region are flocked by German tourists.
The love of Germans for travelling is partially linked to their high school experience, as millions of pupils are involved in annual exchange programs with countries like France, Italy, Great Britain, and the US.
In fact, many German high school graduates decide to travel and even choose to live abroad for a while.
It’s that experience that spurs their desire to take trips to exotic places like the Caribbean, Far East Asia, the Middle East and Africa despite wars, natural catastrophes and terror threats.
Almost 75 percent of Germans spent their holidays near the sea while one-fourth of them travel to the mountains.
Historical sightseeing tours in countries like Egypt, Greece, Italy, Iran, China and Turkey are also seen as an important reason for Germans to travel; however two-thirds of Germans merely want to relax during their holidays.
The cost factor and climate and to a lesser degree the infrastructure of the vacation resort are the main criteria for Germans when they plan their trip.
Around 28 percent of German households spent between 1,500 and 2,500 euros for their holiday trip, while 26 percent spent between 1,000 and 1,500 euros and 17 percent spent less than 1,000 euros.
Most Germans plan to travel for two weeks at a time.
Some 46 percent of Germans take their vacation during the summer time, while 14 percent take multiple trips during the year.
Germans plan their vacation well in advance, often using information provided by travel agencies.
Meanwhile, around 44 percent of Germans book their trips via the Internet.