<p align="LEFT"><strong class="western"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Foreign visitors to Romania spent an average of 2397 lei/person </span></span></span></strong><strong class="western"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">in 2016</span></span></span></span></strong><strong class="western"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">, business being the main reason of travel, </span></span></span></strong><strong class="western"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">reports the National Institute for Statistics. There have been </span></span></span></span></strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">2,469 million guests, spending a total of 5,922 billion lei.</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"> „The main reazon of travel for the non resident tourists, in 2016, was business, participation in congresses, conferences, trainings, fairs and exhibitions (57,6% of the total of foreign visitors), their spending representing a 58,5% of the total. The second reason was travel in general (42,4% of the total), mostly travelling for holiday (61,4%). The travel in general section includes holiday travel, shopping travel, travel for cultural events, sport events, visiting friends and family, medical treatments, transiting or any other reason” is shown in the report. According to the same source there has been a total increase of 10,4% in the number of guests that have used tourist accommodation structures, comparing with 2015. </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Most visitors that used B&amp;B structures came from Germany – 281.000, Israel – 251.9</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">00</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">, Italy – 233.000, France – 145.600 and UK – 140.600</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">.</span></span></span></p>
<p lang="ro-RO" align="LEFT"><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;">ACCOR doubles its portofolio</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">The French Accor </span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=21" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"><u>Hotels</u></span></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">,</span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"> that currently operates 7 hotels in Romania through its Polish partner Orbis, intents to double the number of hotels owned in the country in the following years. This year two units come on the market: </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">ibis Styles in Arad and Mercure in Brasov. „ Our target is to have at least 20 </span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=19" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><u>hotels</u></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">in Romania. We must analyze which brands and what size hotels we are looking for, in order to suit the local market”, said Laurent Picheral, CEO </span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=10" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><u>Hotel</u></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Services, responsible for Germany, Poland, The Baltic countries, Central Europe, Scandinavia and the Balkans</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">.</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"> Laurent Picheral said that they are also looking to see if Fairmont ore Swissotel would be suitable for Romania.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;">CHRISTIAN TOUR reopens charters to Egypt</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">After a two years break, Christian Tour – the largest Romanian tour operator, reopens the charter flights to Hurghada<span lang="ro-RO">. The specialists expect Egipt to become the most fashionable destination for the summer and autumn of 2017. </span>„Egypt is an ideal destination all year round, suitable for any type of traveler and it is only three hours away, by plane, from Romania (…). Our holidays have been very successful two years ago among Romanian tourists. Looking at the large number of requests that we see we expect seats on the first charter flights to fill up quickly”- said Marius Pandel, CEO Christian Tour. </span></span></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">Christian Tour </span>e<span lang="ro-RO">stimates that, between 1st of August and 25th of October</span><span lang="ro-RO">,</span><span lang="ro-RO"> the company will send to Egipt about 4.500 Romanian tourists. </span>There are 3, 4 and 5<span lang="ro-RO"> starts hotels available, with half board but also </span>All Inclusive. The charter flights to <span lang="ro-RO">H</span>urghada will be operated by the Romanian carrier Blue Air. </span></span></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span lang="ro-RO">Angelo goes Tha</span>i</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Angelo Hotels by Vienna House Bucharest, located in the vicinity of International Henri Coanda Airport, was bought by the Thai company U City Public.<span lang="ro-RO"> The price paid to the trading society </span>Warimpex, 180 million Euros, include the shares held by the group to other 7 hotels in Czech Republic and Poland. The shares passed to <span lang="ro-RO">U City Public reprezent half of the real estate portofolio of Warimpex. Vienna House is the largest independent Austrian hotel owner and the company will keep being the administrator of the sold properties for a while.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;">A new IBIS in downtown Bucharest</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The Dogariu family, owner of the 4 stars Mercure in Bucharest, intends to build a new hotel. This time it will be a 3 stars Ibis, in the area of the Romanian Opera. The land has been bought and the construction will probably start at the end of the year. There will be 160 rooms and the investment is estimated at 10 mill</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">ion euro. </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Fivestar </span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=15" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><u>Hospitality</u></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">made the necessary studies and was also involved in negotiating the management contract. The good results obtained with the Mercure hotel</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">,</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> have encouraged the Dogariu family to invest again in a hotel, in a period of time when several new units will open in the Capital of Romania but also in many of the big cities.</span></span></span></p>
<p lang="ro-RO" align="LEFT"><span style="font-size: medium;"><strong><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;">TRIPADVISOR likes Privo</span></span></strong></span></p>
<p align="LEFT"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">The 4 stars Privo Hotel, located in the transilvanian city of Targu-Mures was named the best hotel in Romania, in 2017, by the travel platform TripAdvisor. Privo si number 1 in Top 25 </span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=21" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"><u>Hotels</u></span></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">, followed by </span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=10" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><u>Hotel</u></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Kronwell in Brasov, and </span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=10" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><u>Hotel</u></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Epoque in Bucharest</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">.</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> Privo is ranked </span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">4 in Top 25 </span></span></span></span><a href="http://www.rhn.ro/go.php?w=21" target="http://www.rhn.ro/ro/_blank"><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"><u>Hotels</u></span></span></span></span></a><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO"> </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span lang="ro-RO">for Service. Travelers` Choice Awards is a ranking of</span></span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"> TripAdvisor, based on ratings from travelers around the Globe</span></span></span><span style="color: #000000;"><span style="font-family: Calibri,Calibri,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">.</span></span></span></p>