UN World Tourism Organization Reports Partial Restoration of International Tourism
The UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) reports that the number of international tourist arrivals in the third quarter of this year increased by 58% compared to the same period in 2020, but another 64% less than before the pandemic.
" . The best indicators of the recovery of international tourism were recorded in Europe, where it decreased in the third quarter by 53% compared to the same period in 2019.
From January to September, the number of international tourist arrivals in the world decreased by 20% compared to 2020, while in the first half this figure was minus 54%. In some regions – Southern and Mediterranean Europe, the Caribbean Basin, North and Central America – it exceeded the level of 2020.
In some European countries, the number of tourist arrivals approached the results of 2019, and sometimes even exceeded them.
“The increase in demand is due to the success of vaccination and the relaxation of entry restrictions in many countries. In Europe, the EU Digital Covid Certificate has helped ease travel within the EU, meeting months-long delays in travel demand. The number of arrivals in January-September 2021 was only 8% lower than the same period in 2020, but still 69% lower than in 2019.
Despite the rise in the third quarter, uneven vaccination rates and new strains of the coronavirus could affect the already slow recovery. Economic problems can also reduce demand. UNWTO expects that by the end of 2021, the decline in the number of international tourist arrivals will be 75% compared to the level of 2019. It was the same in 2020.
“The data for the third quarter are encouraging. But arrivals are still 76 percent lower than they were before the pandemic, and different regions of the world are showing very uneven results ... we must continue to work to ensure equal access to vaccinations, coordinate entry requirements, use digital vaccination certificates to make travel more affordable and support the tourism industry, said UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili.
Source: tourism.interfax