Minister Nikolina Angelkova met with Benedetto Della Vedova, Deputy Minister of Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Italy is among the major target tourism markets for Bulgaria. We are working consistently and purposefully to attract an ever increasing number of visitors. This was stated by Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova during her meeting with Benedetto Della Vedova, Deputy Minister of Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and HE Stefano Baldi, Ambassador of Italy in Sofia. During the discussion Minister Angelkova presented the main event being prepared by the institution, which will be incorporated into the calendar of Bulgaria’s presidency of the Council of the European Union.

We expect the Italian Minister of Cultural Heritage and Activities and Tourism, Dario Franceschini, to be part of the Ministerial meeting, which will be held in February next year, Minister Angelkova stated. She also added that another interesting event wherein the country may become involved is on the theme of tourism and energy, it will be held within the framework of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region in May next year.

Minister Angelkova further noted that the two countries have very good relations in tourism, with the country welcoming an ever growing number of guests from Italy. According to stats for the January-August period, Italian tourists in our country exceeded 114 000, a growth of over 20% compared to the same period of last year. In August alone the growth stood at 21 percent, meaning that over 22 000 Italians came to Bulgaria. They travel throughout the country, visiting both the seaside and the cultural-historical sites, Minister Angelkova explained in response to Mr. Vedova’s question about what places are being visited in Bulgaria by guests from Italy. Italians have been seeking new destinations and changing their travel itineraries in recent years, Benedetto Della Vedova commented.

Joint activities between Plovdiv and the Italian city of Matera were also commented on during the meeting. The two cities have been declared Europe’s Capital of Culture for 2019.