Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 14.2.
Latvia: comparative indicators of tourism in the new EU member countries, 2002.
Area
('000 sq km)
Tourist
arrivals ('000)
Tourism
receipts (?mn)
Accommodation capacity
(no. of rooms)
Country
Poland
323
13,980 (TF)
4,759
65,658
73,000
b
Hungary
93
15,870 (VF/2)
3,461
Czech Republic
79
4,579 (TCE)
3,110
91,490
a
Cyprus
9.3
2,418 (TF)
1,970
45,058
a
Slovenia
20
1,302 (TCE)
1,145
15,056
Slovakia
49
1,399 (TCE)
766
34,619
20,346
a,b
Malta
0.3
1,134 (TF)
601
Estonia
45
1,360 (TF)
587
10,845
5,649
a
Lithuania
65
1,433 (TF)
543
Latvia
65
848 (TF)
170
7,034
a
a
2001.
b
number of bed-places
0.5. TF, tourist arrivals at frontiers; TCE, tourist arrivals at all
accommodation establishments; VF/2, visitor arrivals
×
×
0.5.
Source:
Cabrini, 2004.
quarter of the previous year. During the second
quarter of 2005 Latvia's GDP growth rate
reached 11.6% (Eurostat, 2005). The general
economic situation has positively affected
domestic tourism development, is promoting
outbound tourism, and is a prerequisite for busi-
ness travel destination development.
Similar growth rates in the other two Baltic
States (2004 GDP growth of 6.1% for Estonia
and 6.6% for Lithuania) have been a regional
driving force for domestic demand, service
industry and construction growth. The share of
transport and communication in GDP was about
2% (M
a
rti
o
a, 2005), and passenger numbers
increased by nearly 50%, largely due to the
rapid growth of air transport.
Latvian state, with a 52.6% share, and SAS AB,
with a 47.2% share. In 2004, Air Baltic carried
almost 590,000 passengers, an increase of 75%
compared to 2003. In 2005, Air Baltic offered
direct flights to 27 destinations (Air Baltic, 2005).
In autumn 2004, the competition increased
with the two leading European low-cost air-
lines, Ryanair and easyJet, inaugurating ser-
vices. In the autumn of 2005 another two
European airlines - Aer Lingus and Norwegian
Air Shuttle - started operations into R
i
ga Air-
port. As a consequence, Air Baltic has been
forced to reduce flight costs and the range
of services included in the ticket price (food and
beverages are now offered for additional
payment). At the same time, Uzbekistan Air-
ways opened a twice-weekly Tashkent-R
i
ga-
New York service.
Changes in air transportation
market in Latvia
Increase of travellers from Latvia
abroad - increase of leisure and
business trips
The international airport at R
i
ga is the busiest
air transport junction in the Baltic States. Since
1993 the number of air passengers has doubled
(1.1m in 2004). In 2004, six new airlines began
flying to R
i
ga, doubling the number of com-
panies serving the city. The airport now serves
more than 30 destinations in Europe, Asia and
America, and current capacity is 2m passengers
per year (R
i
ga Airport, 2005).
The national airline, Air Baltic, was estab-
lished in 1995. Major shareholders include the
After the restoration of independence the num-
ber of Latvians travelling across the border
rapidly increased. The peak year was 1993
when 2.45m did so - the last year that it was
possible to travel to CIS countries without a
visa. In 1994, after such visa requirements were
introduced, the number of Latvian resident
travellers diminished to 1.78m, although gradual
