St James’ Church in Levoča, which has the tallest Gothic wooden wing altar in the world, is one of the attractions that draws German tourists to Slovakia. (source: Farnosť Levoča)
When German-speaking tourists come to Slovakia it is not just the quality and price of services that determines their satisfaction with their trip.
The country’s roads play an important role too, because so many tour groups from German-speaking countries arrive by bus.
“In August and September, it is a problem to plan a trip around Žilina because of the roadworks under Strečno,” said Peter Bizoň from the PB Travel & Trade travel agency, referring to work being carried out on the busy road that runs past the ruins of Strečno Castle and through the narrow gorge of the Váh River in northern Slovakia, just east of Žilina. Drivers frequently find themselves stuck there in long traffic jams.
Clients from German-speaking countries are very experienced and well-travelled tourists and are very sensitive to the quality of services and their price, Marcela Lauková, chair of the club of incoming tourist agencies within the Slovak Association of Travel Agencies (SACKA) and CEO of Agritours Slovakia CK travel agency, said.
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“In competing with neighbouring destinations, especially Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic, one of the decisive parameters for increasing the number of clients is therefore the quality of services and their price,” said Lauková, adding that recently there has been a substantial increase in the prices of tourism services in Slovakia.
