About 100 private operators and several state agencies showed dignity in their presentation to the world.

Thanks to our efforts, thousands of people who attended the opening event promised to come to Albania or to return to Albania because they found new things to discover yet, said Kumbaro.

Speaking about the forecasts about the number of tourists expected to visit Albania during the current year, Kumbaro said that during the first two months of 2025 there were 14-20% more tourists compared to the same period last year.

“I don’t want to make predictions about the number of tourists this year. But, there were 11.7 million foreign tourists, almost 12 million foreign tourists last year. These are promising figures. Private operators talk about closed reservations for the entire year 2025. And tour operators complain that there is more demand than there is bed capacity, something that incites us to move forward with the construction of new hotels of all levels, from agro-tourism and guesthouses, to hotels and resorts. Albania need 4 and 5 star hotels; we think we need sustainable tourism, so the tourists who pay more, stay longer and they demand standards”, said Kumbaro.

She said that the elite tourism is the target. “Albania does not need mass tourism; it cannot afford it, while in regard to the average tourism that we need, I think we have enough hotels. This is a very big ambition, so we have set the goal for Albania 2030, where all the projects that have been started with the most famous world and Albanian architects will become a reality in the next five years,” added Kumbaro. /a.f/r.e/p.s./

Tourism Minister said that this week was very important for Albanian tourism industry as the country showcased its tourism potential at ITB Berlin fair, the world’s biggest international tourism and travel trade show.

Kumbaro said that 83% of hotel facilities across Albania have been already booked for 2023.

“The agenda of meetings included the participation of Prime Minister Edi Rama and high-level meetings with the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the bilateral meeting with the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili, the meeting with the Austrian State Secretary for Economy and Tourism, Susanne Kraus-Winkler,  intensive meetings with senior tourism industry executives and representatives from Germany, Italy, France, Austria, journalists from leading international media interested in Albania as the latest must-see destination in Europe that is attracting attention of the whole sector, thematic discussions on sustainable tourism, agritourism, cultural tourism, an incredibly high number of people visited Albania’s stand in Berlin,” Kumbaro said.

According to her, the participation of private Albanian tourism agencies, tour operators and representatives of the Albanian hotel industry, with special stands organized by the associations of the tourism sector at this fair was the most important part of this week.

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