GERMAN NATIONAL TOURIST BOARD Annual Report 2020 CRISIS • DIGITALISATION • MARKET ANALYSES • VOLATILITY FLEXIBILITY • IMAGE • DISRUPTION • AI APPLICATIONS OUTLOOK • EMPATHY • RECOVERY • SUSTAINABILITY SOCIAL MEDIA • PROFESSIONALISM • CAMPAIGNS • TRENDS DESIRE TO TRAVEL IS RISING OF EUROPEANS* plan to travel 54 % in the next six months PEOPLE INTERESTED IN CITY LIFE AND URBAN EXPERIENCES are the most eager to travel in the next six months Source: Monitoring Sentiment for Domestic and Intra-European Travel, wave 5 (European Travel Commission, February 2021, CONTENTS survey period December 2020 / January 2021); *52 per cent of Europeans in the survey period November / December 2020 A message from the Executive Board 4 A message from the Federal Government Commissioner for Tourism 6 A message from the President of the Board of Directors 8 Editorial: Petra Hedorfer 10 The German National Tourist Board 15 Remit 16 Objectives 18 Network 20 Awards 22 Inbound tourism today – Politicians 24 The GNTB as a networking platform and source of expertise 29 Digital strategy 30 Corporate communications 36 International markets 38 Inbound tourism today – Hotel industry 44 Inbound tourism today – Transport 48 Inbound tourism today – Tourism partners 52 GNTB campaigns for Destination Germany 55 Brand strategy 56 Empathy campaigns 57 International marketing 62 A look ahead to 2021 72 The regions’ take on inbound tourism 74 The international source markets 79 Organisation, facts and figures 97 Administration 98 GNTB members, sponsors and partners 104 Organisation and structure 108 Production credits 115 Saarland, view of the Moderne Galerie in Saarbrücken 3 A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE BOARD EMERGING STRONGER FROM THE CRISIS DEAR FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES, VALUED PARTNERS IN THE GERMAN TOURISM INDUSTRY, Global tourism, which for decades has been both a driver that the desire to travel is as strong as ever, and the target and a reflection of global economic growth, suffered a se- group of people who enjoy city life, a particularly important vere setback in 2020. Within just a few weeks, the COVID-19 demographic for Germany, are the most eager to travel again. pandemic brought international travel and inbound tourism Safety, health and mindfulness are becoming increasingly to Germany to an almost complete halt. In 2020, after ten important, and Germany is well positioned in this respect. successive record years, we registered a year-on-year drop of Our image is excellent, and leading market research agencies 64.4 per cent in the number of overnight stays made in Ger- are forecasting a rapid recovery for Germany compared to the many by international visitors. rest of the world. Flexibility, innovation and a clear focus are the key elements parliamentarians on the German Bundestag’s Tourism Com- This annual report is more than just a review of a year that Immediately after it became known that a new SARS-like with which we intend to exploit all opportunities for a revival mittee, and the parties’ spokespersons on tourism policy all hit many partners in the German and international tourism virus was spreading in China, the GNTB drew up a compre- of inbound tourism to Germany in 2021. recognise the particular challenges the tourism industry is industry hard. The pandemic also had a significant impact on hensive crisis plan and was able to implement an appropriate facing and are supporting us at all times. The Executive Board the GNTB, as four of its offices around the world had to be strategy as soon as a pandemic was declared. Innovative new products, such as traveller IDs and ‘touchless is particularly grateful for the increase in government fund- closed temporarily. Nevertheless, we have seen how reliable travel’, meet peoples’ need to feel safe and will open up more ing for 2021 to deal with the consequences of the pandemic. partnerships, careful analysis, countercyclical marketing and As part of this strategy, we were able to maintain customer and more tourism experiences again. innovative products can help to overcome the consequences dialogue, and thus enthusiasm for Destination Germany, in Special thanks also go to the staff of the GNTB at head office of this crisis. But as well, we have seen how the crisis can give the markets through high-profile campaigns during the lock- The shift in end customers’ values, which has become even and in the foreign representative offices and sales and mar- rise to new opportunities. down in spring and at the end of the year. We also developed more pronounced as a result of the pandemic, has made our keting agencies around the world for all their hard work. new formats to sustain the contacts we have built up over sustainability strategy more relevant than ever. If one thing is certain, it is that global tourism will be more the years in the international travel industry. Finally, we would like to mention at this point the support robust than ever once the COVID-19 pandemic is over. The Our global campaigns German.Spa.Tradition. and German. and constructive input the GNTB receives from its commit- pressure to innovate as a consequence of digitalisation will Our partners in German tourism, which for the most part are Local.Culture. are ready for launch. We have adapted the tees. Invaluable advice and assistance has been provided in make travel experiences more memorable than ever, while small and medium-sized enterprises, implemented strict hy- German Summer Cities campaign to include sustainable al- particular by the Board of Directors and its president Brigitte travel behaviour will be shaped by the desire to be socially giene regimes to reflect the changes in customer expectations. ternatives for city travellers in line with changing consumer Goertz-Meissner, by the vice presidents Hubert Aiwanger, and environmentally responsible. Numerous influences, behaviour. The Feel Good campaign focuses on specific offer- Reinhard Meyer and Guido Zöllick, and by the marketing com- such as the ‘build back better’ movement, will change our We pressed ahead with our digitalisation strategy, and the ings in sustainable tourism, while several others are targeted mittee and advisory board. We are very grateful to them all. sector’s course away from its current sole focus on growth. first use cases will be available in the open-data project of at the interests of holidaymakers in specific markets. the German tourism industry in spring. Germany’s long-standing guarantors of success as a travel We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our part- destination, namely its above-average share of city breaks At the end of the year, we were able to say with confidence ners in the German inbound tourism industry. These are the and cultural tourism, and its leading position worldwide as that awareness of the Destination Germany brand was still members, sponsors and organisations with whom we have Petra Hedorfer a business travel destination, faced considerable challenges strong despite the crisis. And we are now looking ahead to worked closely throughout the crisis to set the course for a Chief Executive Officer during this crisis. Large-scale cultural events, buzzing city life the future with optimism. successful recovery. and big conferences and trade fairs are hardly compatible with social distancing. With vaccines being rolled out rapidly, including to potential The decision-makers at the Federal Ministry for Economic Af- tourists in many countries, there is a good chance that the fairs and Energy (BMWi) – in particular State Secretary and Nevertheless, we could and can hold our own in the com- incidence of infection can be limited and travel restrictions Member of the German Parliament Thomas Bareiß in his Reinhard Werner petition between destinations: international surveys show eased again in 2021. role as Federal Government Commissioner for Tourism – the Commercial Director 4 www.germany.travel 5 A MESSAGE FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COMMISSIONER FOR TOURISM DEAR FRIENDS, COLLEAGUES AND PARTNERS After ten highly successful years of record-breaking num- pull together to prepare Destination Germany for this new, bers, the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 set global travel back tougher playing field. enormously. Every area of travel and every region around the world has been affected, including inbound tourism to Ger- Travel will not be the same after COVID-19. It is already clear many. It is surely impossible to estimate what the total eco- that safety, sustainability, mindfulness and service will be nomic cost will be when the coronavirus crisis finally ends. more important than before. Many companies have already And yet we are looking to the future with courage and opti- made great strides in recent months to align their offerings mism. The vaccines that are now on the market, the famili- with the future expectations of guests. arity with safety measures and the upcoming summer are a THOMAS ray of hope for cross-border tourism. I am confident that once The GNTB quickly and prudently adapted the use of its mar- the COVID-19 pandemic has been successfully contained, keting tools to the current situation. Through intensive mar- BAREISS, the appetite for travel will be stronger than it has been for ket research, knowledge management, seminars, workshops a long time. I firmly believe that demand will quickly pick and new digital formats, Destination Germany was an ever- MEMBER OF up again and that pre-crisis levels will be achievable in the present with potential visitors all over the world, as well as medium term. with the many partners in the international travel industry. THE GERMAN I am always impressed by the high level of expertise and cre- The current standstill in tourism has had a huge impact ativity within the GNTB, and I am glad to have it by our side. PARLIAMENT on businesses in the industry. The affected companies, the It deserves the highest praise.