România socialistă la apogeul destinderii. Turism şi turişti într-o lume globală (1970-1980)
Socialist Romania at Peak Detente. Tourism and Tourists in a Global World (1970-1980)

Summary/Abstract: At the beginning of the 1970s, socialist Romania joined the global world by developing its tourism industry. The article highlights the Romanian experience in the context of the relaxation of Cold War tensions and the liberalisation of international travel. The revitalization of the tourism industry took place at a time of pronounced foreign policy openness by the Romanian communist regime. It also benefited from the negotiations at the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which included provisions about the improved circulation of goods, cultural values and tourists between East and West. During this period, Romanian authorities modernised and built new facilities for retorts at the Black Sea coast, started constructing the first highway, inaugurated the only international airport (Bucharest-Otopeni) and opened the Intercontinental Hotel in Bucharest – the most luxurious at the time. Simultaneously, the Ministry of Tourism published two special magazines, România pitorească (1972) and Vacances en Roumanie (1976), inviting foreign tourists to spend their holidays in Romania. The abundance of the 1970s was meant to be the expression of the progress achieved by the Romanian socialist economy. Foreign tourists were invited to enjoy these remarkable achievements. Nicolae Ceauşescu supported the development of the tourism industry and the policies of attracting as many foreign tourists as possible, because they constituted important sources of income for the socialist economy. However, there were also risks to this approach, as party and Securitate archives show: negative influences on the population through exposure to foreign, un-socialist ideas and mores. I argue that the presence of foreign tourists in the context of the development of the tourism industry and the liberalization of travel left a distinct imprint on everyday life in socialist Romania during the 1970s.

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