Germany more popular than ever before

In 2016, there were a total of 447 million overnight stays in Germany - more than ever before. In the past four years, tourism has seen some positive developments, according to government spokesperson Steffen Seibert, who commented on the latest tourism report by the Federal Ministry for Economics on Wednesday.

Foreign visitors also breaking records

The number of overnight stays by foreign tourists has passed the 80-million mark for the first time. Tourism in Germany is a "very strong business sector accounting for 100 billion euros annually in direct gross value added," Seibert said. Some 2.9 million people work in the travel industry.

German state of Bavaria tops the list

Among all federal states, Bavaria is the most popular destination for domestic visitors, clocking up 73.3 million overnight stays last year. Baden-Württemberg, with 40.8 million overnight stays, takes second place, followed by North Rhine-Westphalia with 39.2 million, Lower Saxony with 39.1 million and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern with 29.3 million overnight stays.

cd/at (dpa)