Global internationaltourist arrivals will reach 2019 levels by the close of this year, confirming the sector’s full recovery by exceeding expectations as revenues had recovered ahead of schedule in 2023, according to estimates from the new UN Tourism Barometer.
This return to peak levels in the tourism industry is due to post-pandemic demand in Europe, the robust performance of major outbound markets and the recovery in Asia-Pacific. However, there is still room for recovery in several sub-regions, as it is slower in Northeast Asia and Central and Eastern Europe, in contrast to strong performances in other European sub-regions, the Middle East, Central America and the Caribbean. UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili stressed that “the strong growth seen in global tourism is excellent news for economies around the world.” “The fact that visitor spending is growing has a direct impact on millions of jobs and small businesses, contributing decisively to increased tax revenues for many economies,” he added. During the first nine months of 2024, a total of 1.1 billion tourists traveled to international destinations, recovering 98% of pre-pandemic levels. Increased air connectivity and visa facilitation have been key to this trend. By region, the Middle East continued on the path of record growth in this nine-month period, up 29% compared to 2019, while Europe (+1%) and Africa (+6%) also followed suit. Between January and September, the Americas recovered 97% of its arrivals compared to five years ago, while Asia-Pacific reached 85% compared to a 66% recovery in 2023. Likewise, the summer season in the Northern Hemisphere was generally strong, with global arrivals recording 99% of pre-pandemic values in the third quarter of 2024. A total of 60 out of 111 destinations exceeded these figures in the first eight to nine months of 2024. Some of the best performing destinations during this period were Qatar (+141%), Albania (+77%), Saudi Arabia (+61%), Curacao (+48%), Tanzania (+43%), Colombia and Andorra (both +36%).
Impact of tourism
In the first nine months of 2024, 35 of the 43 countries with available data on tourism receipts surpassed pre-pandemic levels, posting double-digit growth and far outpacing inflation in most cases. Serbia (+99%) stood out, as did Pakistan (+64%), Romania (+61%), Japan (+59%), Portugal (+51%), Nicaragua and Tanzania (both +50%). Among the top tourism revenue generators, Japan (+59%), Turkey (+41%) and France (+27%), grew by double digits through September 2024, while Spain (+36%) and Italy (+26%) also reported significant increases. In addition, the United Kingdom increased its revenues by 43%, Canada by 35% and Australia by 18%, all through June 2024. The United States, the largest generator of tourism receipts, reported 7% growth through September. Data on international tourism spending reflected the same trend, especially among large outbound markets, such as Germany (+35% compared to 2019), the United States (+33%) and France (+11%). Strong spending growth was also reported from the UK (+46%), Australia (+34%), Canada (+28%) and Italy (+26%), all through June 2024. For India they show an increase in outbound spending from this increasingly important market, with 81% growth to June 2024 compared to the same period in 2019.
