ECTAA Names Bulgaria as ‘Preferred Destination’ of Europe’s Travel Agents for 2024

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators’ Associations (ECTAA) on Tuesday announced Bulgaria as its “Preferred Destination” for 2024 and will work with the Bulgarian Tourism Ministry and ABTTA (Association of Bulgarian Tour Operators and Travel Agents) to promote the country as an attractive destination in Europe.

As ECTAA Preferred Destination 2024, Bulgaria’s tourism ministry will be able to present the extensive offerings of the country to some 80,000 European travel professionals, encouraging them to consider Bulgaria as the “premier choice” for their clientele.

“We strongly believe that Bulgaria could become one of the most competitive countries in European tourism and that holiday makers could enjoy a totally new experience in this country,” Secretary General of ECTAA, Eric Drésin, said.

ECTAA and the Bulgarian tourism ministry agreed to launch a collaborative campaign to promote Bulgaria to ECTAA members and beyond.

“We are sure that the ‘Preferred Destination’ programme will result in better and stronger relations between Bulgaria incoming agents and our members,” Drésin added.

ECTAA said that in the the coming months, it will become a “true partner” in the travel and tourism promotion programme outside of Bulgaria by facilitating market access to European travel agents and tour operators for the local destination management companies and other partners.

As part of the “Preferred Destination” programme, informative online roundtables will be scheduled for travel agents and tour operators, tailored explicitly to meet the promotion objectives of Bulgaria’s tourism ministry.

Moreover, additional presence in social media will aim at supporting Bulgaria as an attractive destination.

ECTAA will hold its general meeting in Sofia in October 2024 and provide a platform to showcase Bulgaria to leaders, decision-makers, and industry experts from across Europe.

It is noted that ECTAA’s announcement comes shortly after European Union member states agreed to remove air and maritime internal border controls with Bulgaria and welcome the country into the Schengen area. The accession of Bulgaria into the Schengen area is expected to boost travel, trade and tourism in the country.

Greece was ECTAA’s “Preferred Destination” in 2023.