Tourism chiefs in Salzburg, Austria, have created an etiquette guide for visitors from the Middle East in a bid to stop them trying to haggle over prices, cooking in their rooms and dumping their litter around the region.

The pamphlets are being handed out to Arabic guests in the lakeside resort of Zell am See, regarded as one of the most picturesque and expensive of Austria's tourist destinations, reported the Gulf Daily News, our sister publication.

Located in the Kitzbuhel Alps, the town is the country's number one lakeside destination on the edge of the 68-metre deep Lake Zell.

But while many locals have been complaining about the way the guests behave, the region does not want to give up the tourism revenue, which in the last 10 years has increased in the Zell am See-Kaprun region by several hundred per cent, according to Leo Bauernberger, managing director of Salzburg region tourism board.

He added: "Arabs love to visit the region, they love the clear fresh water, the mountain lakes and the climate."

According to the latest tourism statistics, last year there were 275,000 overnight stays by Arab guests in the Zell am See-Kaprun region, and although the area is also a winter tourism destination almost all of the visits were in summer.

Tourism spokeswoman Renate Ecker admitted that there were tourism destinations in the region that did not so readily accept Arab guests, in particular those where there was a ban on people wearing a burqa, with the traditional costume being the biggest cause for concern in the area.

But it is not just the burqa that is causing problems. Zell am See prides itself on the natural beauty of the region and they claim that the Arabs are leaving rubbish all over the place.

They are also accused of ignoring traffic laws, in particular parking, and the pamphlet partly came about as a result of discussions between local police and tourism officials over driving issues.

The eight-page etiquette guide called 'Where Cultures Meet' came out at the middle of this month and is only handed out to guests from Arab regions.-TradeArabia News Service