Romania has destinations worth discovering, modernised airports and skilled tourism and aviation professionals. Turning these strengths into more visitors and better air links requires them to work together. This was the message shared by the Romanian Airline Companies Association (RACA) at Adevărul Travel Forum 2026.
Represented by its president, Marius Popescu, RACA took part in the panel on connectivity, investment and destination development at an Adevărul event organised by IC Events. The discussion connected tourism development with transport, investment and cooperation between public authorities and the private sector.
Connectivity and destination development were central to the discussion at Adevărul Travel Forum 2026.
From promotion to destination management
A destination needs an identity and visibility. It also needs a strategy that answers practical questions: which visitors it wants to attract, from which markets, how they will get there, what experiences they will find and what will encourage them to return.
For RACA, this is the essential role of Destination Management Organisations, or DMOs. They should bring local authorities, accommodation providers, travel agencies, airports and airlines around the same table. Promotion needs to connect with tourism products that can be sold, accessible transport and measurable results.
Tourism development requires cooperation among those who shape and deliver the destination experience.
Air routes need demand
A modern airport creates an opportunity for the region it serves. Making the most of that opportunity requires commercial and tourism development efforts to match the infrastructure investment. An airline examines demand, costs, load factors and seasonality before deciding whether a route can be sustained.
The example of Tulcea and the Danube Delta, raised by RACA’s president, shows why infrastructure and a destination’s appeal need to be supported by a joint plan. Accommodation, local experiences, transfers and distribution through agencies and tour operators should be developed alongside discussions about flights.
Under this approach, launching a route becomes part of a destination development project. The aim is for the service to remain viable beyond its launch period, supported by passengers with compelling reasons to choose that destination.
RACA advocates building demand and partnerships that can make routes commercially viable.
The journey continues after landing
For visitors, the destination experience includes the entire journey. The ease of reaching the city, railway station or hotel from the airport matters, as do transfer times and access to useful information.
At the forum, RACA’s president highlighted the need to integrate air, rail and road transport. For the association, better connectivity means effective links between these services and a journey that visitors can plan with ease.
Difficult times call for practical support
Romanian airlines are facing difficult conditions. Fuel costs, environmental obligations and operational disruptions add to one another. Passenger confidence remains essential, and RACA reiterates that Romanian operators work within the common European aviation safety framework.
In its public statements, the association calls on the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure for dialogue with airlines, institutional coordination, predictability and a review of costs that authorities can influence. The support sought aims to preserve connectivity and investment capacity while ensuring fair competition.
Dialogue between the industry and public authorities should lead to practical solutions.
A shared goal for tourism and aviation
For RACA, better-connected destinations and stronger Romanian airlines are mutually reinforcing goals. Airlines can contribute to regional development where demand and lasting partnerships exist, while destinations can grow through better access to travel markets. Supporting Romanian aviation should therefore be seen as an investment in mobility and destination economies.
Participation in Adevărul Travel Forum 2026 reflects the association’s readiness to work with airports, DMOs, the tourism industry and public institutions. RACA thanks Adevărul, IC Events and Andreea Traicu for the invitation and the opportunity for dialogue.
RACA promotes a competitive, connected and sustainable aviation sector in Romania, benefiting passengers and the national economy.