A RETROSPECTIVE LOOK AT THE EVOLUTION OF ROMANIAN TOURISM, AT THE BORDER BETWEEN THE MILLENNIA (1989-2019)

Abstract

During the last 30 years we have witnessed major changes in tourism worldwide due to a lot of factors. Changes in political situation in Eastern Europe open a lot of countries to international tourism. Changes in air transport made more accessible some overseas or island destination. The increase of general welfare boosted the demand for tourism and the stability of the socio-political environment sustains a steady upward trend in international tourism arrivals. Looking back at Romania’s tourism we see a period with major structural changes and some major turning points. A brief evolution of the sector is presented with an emphasis on the most important years. The most important regulations are presented in this paper together with their impact on Romania’s tourism sector. To show a more accurate image we include main statistical information about this topic demonstrating that tourism is an important part of Romanian economy.