Berlin beats Rome in tourist popularity rankings

Yes, recently the Sistine Chapel, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome's National Museum, The Borghese Museum, The Pantheon, Trevi Fountain, Trajan's forum, all the marbled churches, gelato and over 2700 years of history were moved to Berlin---DUH!

The source is cited as the Berlin Tourism Agency. Clearly they have manipulated statistics to make their case. Two things tell me this isn't true. - Personal experience. I know Rome. I know Berlin. They are both great. No way Berlin compares in terms of the sheer mob of tourists you see in Rome (a plus for Berlin). - Independent tracking of tourism says Berlin is not even close to Rome. I know this is two years old, but I'd believe it over a tourism agency. http://www.euromonitor.com/_Euromonitor_Internationals_Top_City_Destinations_Ranking "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics." - Mark Twain (and others)

The numbers tracked in these particular statistics are hotel night stays. I don't see why the Berlin tourist bureau needed to manipulate those. Berlin has changed tremendously at a very fast pace over the last couple of decades so statistics change fast as well. Some of the reasons Rome might feel more crowded with tourists but does not actually get that many more than Berlin: * The historical city centre in Rome is very small. Berlin has a much larger area over which tourists can spread out and thus don't create the same kind of crowded feeling. * 1-2 million people (and lots of them visitors staying over night) for an event in front of the Brandenburg Gate is not unusual but extremely rare in Rome because this kind of space is not there. * Convention tourism might be stronger in Berlin than in Rome and that is difficult to see from the perspective of an American traveller who is there to see the cultural heritage. * Berlin might be more popular with European tourists than Rome. They still are the main group of tourists in both cities. Americans for some reason prefer Italy and Rome as a premier destination but they still only make up a small fraction of overall tourism in Italy.

I know that the universities in Berlin are the sites for international educational conferences, such as at Humboldt Uni on Unter den Linden in July 2007 when I saw a banner announcing such a conference. On every trip, regardless of length, I go back to Berlin and have seen tourists, including Russians and French, Italian class groups, from all over Europe in the summer, Also there seems to be more and more Asian tourists in Berlin. I don't know about Rome as regards to expense, but I doubt it can beat Berlin in being inexpensive as a big city. Compared to Paris, London, Vienna, Munich, Berlin is cheap when you eat and stay in the city's center areas. That could be a factor in drawing in tourists. I do agree that if you polled Americans visiting Europe which they would visit first, Rome or Berlin, Rome would win out among Americans. If the figures indicated are accurate, which I tend to believe, then my answer is: prima!

This statistic does not say anything about Rome having lost visitors. I bet it remains a popular destination that hasn't lost any appeal or historical treasures. It's just that Berlin doubled its night stays over the past 10 years and thus is finally catching up with other European capitals - though of course not questioning the overwhelming draw of London or Paris. I could also see that a lot of people who would not travel to Berlin in the past because it was too cumbersome given the political circumstances now flock to this destination. It is no surprise to me that the Pergamon Museum gets twice as many visitors as the Borghese Gallery today considering the tremendous treasures displayed there. They just weren't as accessible 20 years ago.

All it says to me is that more hotel rooms were sold. That doesn't mean it saw more visitors or is a more popular tourist destination. I don't know what the situation is in Berlin, but a LOT of visitors to Rome rent apartments either directly from owners or through private agencies. i wouldn't be surprised if those visitors weren't counted. I also know a lot of people who have been to rome on cruises who actually never sleep in Rome but certainly would count as tourists clogging the streets and museums. It's certainly good news for Berlin and its culture and economy (especially the bit about Israeli tourism being up there, that's always nice to see things like that), but i would have a very hard time believing Berlin is a "more popular tourist destination" especially if the only criterion is hotel rooms sold.

Ok, this not scientific, but I believe the data gives some insight directionally. Venere.com has 1400 hotels for Rome and 400 for Berlin. Tripadvisor has 1200 for Rome and 600 for Berlin. The op shows data, with no source cited, issued by press release from a tourism board. The Euromonitor is from an independent source and has no incentive, financial or otherwise, in skewing data.

Maybe they are housing ALL those tourists here---The Reichstag building is a historical edifice in Berlin, Germany.

There is a problem with just counting hotel nights....how many of those are tourists and how many are business travelers. I believe Berlin gets more business visitors than Rome. So, instead of saying Berlin gets more tourists, it would be better to say Berlin gets more visitors. Oh, but wait, then you have to think about average stay. Do people visiting Berlin stay longer than those visiting Rome? If that were the case, it's possible that Berlin has less visitors, but they stayed longer.

Apt. rental in Berlin is HUGE business. European visitors flock there as well as visitors from around the whole world, plus there are cheap flights from the UK. If you add up a few things like the World Cup being held in Germany in 2006, the anniversary of the Wall coming down last year, plus all the events that are held in Berlin that can't be held in Rome due to size, you get an awful lot of overnights. How many people flock to Rome just for New Years eve? Any idea how many go to Berlin for the Christmas Markets or the Berlin Marathon or all the conventions held there? Economically, visiting Berlin is a bargain compared to Rome. While comparing hotels, how many hostels do you think are in Berlin? For backpackers, the city is a dream, cheap, plentiful rooms and food. Lively night life, huge art, music, and fashion scene. I haven't looked at the figures, but my guess is that they are probably right.

Berlin is a huge destination for conferences, as the others implied. Rome, not so much. That probably accounts for part of the difference.