Switzerland was first and Austria was third among European countries in the biennial report released on Thursday. It gives nations a ranking under a “Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index.”
Germany’s strong showing echoed information from the annual ITB tourism fair in Berlin last week. On Monday Germany was named Europe’s most popular holiday destination for the fifth year in a row, according to experts at the major trade fair.
The Global Economic Forum report said Germany’s infrastructure is considered among the best in the world. The country earned a sixth place ranking for its ground transportation infrastructure and seventh for air.
The almost 600 annual trade fairs in the country gave Germany a second place ranking in that category, while the country nabbed fifth place for its many World Heritage cultural sties.
The country also places a great emphasis on sustainable tourism growth, with a fourth place ranking in that category, the report said.
Neighboring France didn’t fare so well, dropping from third in 2011 to seventh. But Spain climbed to fourth from eighth, while the United Kingdom moved up to fifth place from seventh.
The Local/mw
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