Berlin, 10 March 2010 “Berlin’s winter magic casts its spell”, says Burkhard Kieker, CEO of Berlin Tourismus Marketing GmbH (BTM). In time for the opening of ITB, the German capital delights in the best January tourism figures ever: 16.7 percent more room nights and 13.9 percent more visitors speak for themselves. Overall the Berlin-Brandenburg Statistics Office recorded 1.17 million room nights and 527,500 visitors in the first month of the year.

Both international and – with an unusually high rise – national visitors were major drivers behind this result. “Berlin is the champion of growth right now in the travel industry. But this double-digit result even took us by surprise. Berlin is a trendy city that continues to act as a major crowd-puller. What’s more, the Bread & Butter fashion week also played a major role. It got us off to a good start to the year even if it is still too early to predict a trend from these figures for 2010.”

In January a total of 157,000 foreign guests travelled to the city on the river Spree, an increase of 16.8 percent. The volume of international room nights has likewise risen markedly: 417,300 hotel nights generated a 20 percent increase. The German capital proved to be particularly popular in Italy (plus 44.8 percent), France (plus 41 percent) and the USA (plus 26.2 percent). 370,500 visitors from within Germany travelled to Berlin, 12.7percent more than in the same month the previous year. They generated 748,800 room nights and an increase of 14.9 percent.

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