Malta Extends Warm Welcome For New 2007 German Tourists

Vacation destination Malta in Europe has enjoyed a revival in the number of British people visiting the Mediterranean holiday island since low cost flights were introduced last year.

Hotel and holiday bookings have been up for the first time in a number of years, and Malta's traditional market has rediscovered the island as a holiday destination.

Malta has always been a likely spot for the British, with nearly all Maltese speaking fluent English - and like the British the Maltese drive on the left.

Malta used to be governed by the British, until 1964 when Malta became independent.

But outside of the UK holiday market, Malta hasn't enjoyed the same levels of visitors from other European countries such as Italy and Germany, compared to her competitor Spanish islands of Mallorca and Tenerife.

But that is now set to change, with a further boost for the Malta holiday and hotel markets, vital to the island's economy.

A low cost airline in Germany, Germanwings, started flights from Germany to Malta in late March, and with good bookings is looking to increase the number of flights to the island.

Commenting on the expansion plans, the airline said recently that it was very happy with its Malta route, and that the peak summer months were looking particularly good.

At the moment the flights to Malta are from Stuttgart and Cologne, and they would like to start flying from Hamburg in the autumn. Whether this will be allowed to happen though is problematic as Air Malta already serves the Hamburg route.

If flying from Hamburg to Malta doesn't prove possible, the airline hopes that it will be able to increase the frequency of the routes it already has.

As well as boosting the Malta hotels market, the arrival of increased numbers of tourists from Germany could also impact the Malta property market.

Property inflation in Malta has been high in recent years, with joining the EU a factor, and joining the Euro currency another.

The majority of sales in the past to overseas property buyers have been to the UK and Irish markets. But if German tourism rises it's possible that this will add pressure to property prices again if they decide they like Malta enough to invest in a villa or holiday home.
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