The number of German tourist visits to Bulgaria’s coastal resorts reached a record low, representatives of the national tourism board said.

German tour operators TUI and ITS registered the biggest decrease, Dnevnik newspaper reported. Both companies announced 13 to 15 per cent smaller figures than the ones for 2005.

Bulgaria faced problems with the decreasing number of German tourists for the past three years, Krasimir Stanev, executive director of Albena resort said.

Tour operators and hotel managers attempted to cover the losses by attracting tourists from other countries. Companies in the northern parts of the Black Sea coastal region counted on tourists from Romania, Russia and the Scandinavian countries.

Latest tendencies revealed that the number of Romanian and Russian tourists had reached 95 000 people for the first months of the summer.

For the first time Bulgaria became a leading destination for Scandinavian tourists, attracting over 80 000 people, TUI Nordic said. The number was 40 per cent higher than the one for 2005, Dnevnik reported.