Bucharest, the city with the highest development potential in 2018

Bucharest ranks first among the top destinations in Europe with the highest development potential, according to the Global Mastercard of Urbank Ddestinations 2018. Last year, Bucharest was the city with the largest increase in the number of tourists.

“We are very proud that Bucharest is among the top European destinations with the greatest potential for development. On the other hand, we are not surprised, given that we believe that Bucharest succeeds in successfully meeting the exigencies of the tourists from all over the world, thus defeating cities with tradition in the tourist circuit,” said Diana Tanase, area marketing manager at Mastercard Romania.

The development potential registered by Bucharest in 2018 is 10.7 percent. Mastercard data show that Bucharest counts about 1.3 million tourists who use accommodation services, the average stay time for tourists is 1.6 days, while the average spend per day amounts to USD 210.

The second place in the ranking is Lisbon, with a growth potential of 10.6 percent in 2018. Lisbon has 4.9 million tourists who use accommodation, the average duration a tourist spends in Lisbon is 2.6 days, while daily spending amounts to an average of USD 163.

The third place in the top European cities with the greatest development potential is Santa Cruz De La Palma, with 9.3 percent, that counts on 5 million tourists who use accommodation, tourists spend an average of 8.1 days in the city, and daily spends an average of USD 210.

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The Global Mastercard of Urban Destinations, which expanded this year and includes 162 cities, is not just a top of urban destinations globally but, based on a thorough analysis of tourists’ volume and spending in 2017, offers as well the growth projections for 2018 and, for the first time, an overall view of the average length of stay and the amount spent per day.

Bangkok, the most visited city in the world

In terms of the top of the most visited cities globally, Bangkok ranks first in this ranking, followed by London and Paris. The following most visited cities around the world are Dubai, Singapore, New York, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, Istanbul and Seoul. The cities in this top show once again the importance of a well-established infrastructure, of a strong local culture, but also of tourist and business attractions.

With about 20 million visitors, Bangkok remains the leader in this year’s ranking and is unlikely to be overtaken, given the strong 9.6 percent growth projected for 2018. Visitors tend to stay in Bangkok for 4.7 nights and spend an average of USD 173 a day.

Regardless of why people choose to travel either for business or for leisure, Mastercard collaborates with a wide range of partners, including travel companies, urban planners, banks and merchants for:

• identify and address urban challenges through scalable solutions for digital inclusion and economic development; Mastercard has recently launched City Possible, a global platform for cities, research institutions and private sector organizations through which shared challenges are addressed through collaboration;
• Simplify access to essential urban services, such as public transport: In over 100 cities, visitors and locals can use the contactless Mastercard they already have in order to get access to trains and buses;
• Help people travel safely by providing planning services, facilities and connectivity with no problems at destination, but also acceptance in millions of locations around the world;
• create unique culinary, entertainment and shopping experiences in 42 Priceless cities around the world.