Ukraine has received about $1 billion less than it could have from hosting Euro 2012, because it did not use the opportunity to promote its tourism potential, Head of the Council on Tourism and Resorts Yevhen Samartsev has said.
“There was an economic evaluation of Euro 2012 – 1.8 million tourists and a billion [U.S. dollars] in revenue. Unfortunately, the reality is quite different. The issue concerns, at best, 250,000 tourists and 100-140 million dollars in revenue. The country has received about a billion dollars less even from Euro 2012 itself. And, to some extent, we do not have a stable positive brand in tourists visiting [our country] after this. We have not secured this emotional and informational success,” he said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Oct.18.
Samartsev compared the situation with Poland, which, he said, unlike Ukraine, adopted a national program for the development of the tourism industry ahead of Euro 2012.
“There is no new program for tourism development in our country, and there is no marketing strategy to promote tourism products,” he said.
