The year 2022 is not yet as busy as it was in 2019. But the tourism sector in and around Eindhoven is picking up considerably, according to the municipality.
Corona brought about various changes for the tourism sector in the region. People did not travel as far from home and often chose a holiday within their own country. And holiday parks and campsites in the area also notice this, says policy advisor for hospitality, retail and leisure Marco Karsemakers of the Municipality of Eindhoven.
‘Renting for a day’
“As a result, the campsites and holiday parks in the region are packed. And the owners respond to this by changing the conditions. A few years ago you could still rent a pitch for a day or two. Now you have to book for at least a week. And when people go camping or stay in a cottage in the area for one or two weeks, they always include at least one day in the city. That’s good news for our hospitality and retail sectors”.
Campaign
“In addition, the hotels in the centre are also well-filled, and really by people who come here for their leisure activities”, the policy advisor says. “Dutch people but also many Belgians and Germans. A few years ago we started a campaign to point out to people there what a beautiful region this is. We see that this is bearing fruit”.
External factors
But other factors also play a role, Karsemakers observes. “The stories of how busy it is at the airports also contribute to people being more inclined to find a holiday destination within driving distance. On top of that, it’s also very hot weather here. People are more likely to think ‘we’ll go camping nearby’ when it’s above 25 degrees. That’s a lot more appealing than 18 degrees and drizzling weather”.
Exactly how many tourists are coming to the Eindhoven region is not yet known. Karsemakers can be more specific after the holidays. “Then we know how many guests stayed here and how much turnover the sector has made. It is also difficult to make an estimate because the previous two years were atypical. So how successful this summer will be we won’t know until afterwards. But it looks good, although matching the summer of 2019 in terms of crowds is probably not going to happen yet”.
Source: Studio040
Translated by: Bob
