The World Tourism Organisation said the pace of recovery around the world remained slow and uneven. Due to varying degrees of travel restrictions, vaccination rates, and traveler confidence. The pace of recovery around the world remains slow and uneven due to varying degrees of movement restrictions, vaccination rates, and traveler confidence. Tourist numbers are not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024 at the earliest, the WTO said on Tuesday.
Global Tourism Won’t Return To Pre-Pandemic Levels Until 2024: UN
The highly contagious but mild variant of Omicron will “interrupt the recovery” in early 2022 after a 4% increase last year compared to 2020.
Tourism revenue in 2020 was down 72% from the previous year, which ended with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
“The pace of recovery remains slow and uneven across regions of the world. Due to varying degrees of movement restrictions, vaccination rates, and traveler confidence,” the World Tourism Organization said in a press release.
Compared to 2020, foreign tourist arrivals in Europe and the Americas increased by 19% and 17% respectively last year.
However, arrivals to the Middle East fell by 24% in 2021, while arrivals to the Asia Pacific were 65%. That was below 2020 levels and 94% below pre-pandemic levels.
After the turbulent first months caused by the Omicron wave. This year’s travel professionals “see a better outlook,” the statement said.
The agency expects international tourist arrivals to increase by 30% to 78% this year compared to 2021. But will remain well below 2019 levels.
Most experts say they won’t return to pre-pandemic levels until at least 2024.
Many countries rely heavily on tourism and are eagerly waiting for life to return to normal.
The contribution of tourism to the economy (as measured by direct tourism GDP) is estimated at $1.9 trillion (€1.68 trillion) in 2021, up from $1.6 trillion in 2020. But still, well below the previous large figure, the pre-pandemic world is worth $3.5 trillion, he said.
