Meanwhile, few destinations in Africa and the Americas are surpassing 2019 levels, according to the United Nations' main tourism body.
Two and a half years into the pandemic, clear winners have emerged in the race to return tourism economies to pre-pandemic levels — and Europe tops that list, according to the latest data from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
Thanks to intra-regional travel, as well as the return of American tourists to their favorite destinations, Europe accounted for 68% of the world's 477 million international arrivals between January and September 2022. This represents an 81% rebound in tourist arrivals. before the epidemic hit.
The data revealed that most of travelers' pent-up desire to spend a vacation in European cities or on the Mediterranean coasts was manifested in the third quarter of the year. This is also the story of tourist arrivals around the world: most of the bounce in international travel occurred between July and September. That is, four months after the start of the Russian war on Ukraine, and after the wide easing of entry requirements for the first time since March 2020, which boosted consumer confidence in transatlantic travel.
Europe was followed in the list of the fastest recovering regions in the world this year, the Middle East, Africa and the Americas, reaching 77%, 63% and 66% of 2019 levels by September, respectively.
A closer look at individual destinations also reveals a handful of non-European countries setting new records in tourist arrivals, exceeding 2019 levels, according to the UNWTO. These include Ethiopia, Honduras, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Colombia, El Salvador and Iceland.
This is in contrast to the US, where levels of outbound tourist arrivals remained at 34% below pre-2019 levels in September. An estimated 7 million visitors are also likely to skip visiting the US next year due to severe visitor visa processing delays, according to the American Travel Association,
By the end of 2022, the United Nations' major tourism body expects the global travel industry to reach a recovery of 65% from pre-pandemic levels - generating approximately $1.2 to $1.3 trillion in tourism revenue, on track to reach to the record of $1.8 trillion. . The ongoing recovery of the tourism sector may still be uneven, but it remains on track as we long to explore the world again despite inflation, the energy crisis and the looming global recession.