The meeting co-hosted by the Ministry of Tourism and Environment and UNWTO, opened with a reception ceremony attended by the Minister of Tourism and Environment Mirela Kumbaro, Secretary General Zurab Pololikashvili and Prime Minister Edi Rama.

Minister Kumbaro in her opening remarks cited the Albanian hospitality, transformed today into a symbol of tourism.

“Edith Durham, the British writer of the 19th century who set foot in the north of Albania, in the rough but amazing terrain surrounded by the Albanian Alps, immersed herself in those fascinating sights that today millions and millions of curious people from all over the world see on TikTok or on Instagram and are eager to visit them. The 19th century writer once wrote in her memoirs that this very word, “The word – welcome – comes straight from the soul of those people.

That place and those people never cease to amaze you. Well, this spirit, these people whom you have visited today, are the ones who today have turned history and tradition into a surprising hospitality industry. Therefore, as an Albanian and as the Minister of Tourism of Albania, I feel privileged and very honored to welcome you to Albania, thanking each one of you, starting from our friend Zurab and every European delegation that chose Albania to celebrate the 70th birthday of the Commission for Europe of our big “UN Tourism” Family,” Minister Kumbaro said.

For 2023, it was the Barometer of the World Tourism Organization that ranked Albania first in Europe and fourth in the world for the increase in influx of tourists. In her remarks, Minister Kumbaro added that the latest data on tourism arrivals show that Albania is very likely to remain at the top of the list.

“In 2023, we hosted 10.1 million tourists. It is very challenging, yet it is one of those cases showing that when things are done with love and dedication in implementing a vision, when we join forces with tourism professionals, investors, tour operators, the right international partners, there is nothing that can stand in our way.
Dear Zurab, I have to inform you that you will most likely find us again at the top of the list, because according to the latest figures, for the first three months of 2024, Albania welcomed 1.7 million foreign visitors or about 60% more than the same period of the previous year.
But beyond the numbers, Albania, or the “Undiscovered Pearl of the Mediterranean”, as many international newspapers continue to name it, is experiencing transformation due to tourism not simply as a “pleasure economy”, but above all as a form of social emancipation. Thanks to tourism, today it is easier for Albania to showcase its beauties, its people, its energies and its role in these troubled times.
In these two years we are writing a new chapter of cooperation with the World Tourism Organization and I am grateful to all my colleagues in this hall for their trust in Albania,” Minister Kumbaro continued.
“Today Albania is a beautiful surprise in the development of global tourism, almost a symbol that just like people – even countries can also reinvent themselves in a few years – overcoming difficult moments due to the games of history and becoming through the strength of tourism, the country that is arousing everyone’s curiosity as a much-desired destination,” Kumbaro said, among other things, in her speech.

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