The World Tourism Organization said that the number of international tourist arrivals rose 58 percent during the third quarter of 2021 on an annual basis, thanks to the recovery of tourism during the summer season in the northern hemisphere, especially in Europe.
The organization said in a report, Sunday, that global tourism is improving in the third quarter, but the recovery is still fragile.
The organization indicated that the number of tourist arrivals during the third quarter of 2021 is still 64 percent lower than the levels of 2019.
According to the report, Europe recorded the best relative performance in the third quarter, with international arrivals down 53 percent from the same period in 2019.
The report stated that the increase in demand compared to 2020, was driven by the increase in travelers’ confidence amid the rapid progress in vaccinations and the easing of entry restrictions in many destinations.
The report finds that despite recent improvements, uneven vaccination rates around the world and new strains of corona could affect the slow and fragile recovery.
He expected that the economic pressures caused by the epidemic will affect the demand for travel, which has been exacerbated by the recent rise in oil prices and the disruption of supply chains.
The Tourism Organization estimated that the number of international tourist arrivals will remain between 70 percent and 75 percent below 2019 levels in 2021 as a whole, a decline similar to what happened in 2020.
The organization predicted that the direct GDP of tourism would lose another $2 trillion, as was the case in 2020.
The report estimated that global tourism revenues would be between $700-800 billion, much less than the $1.7 trillion recorded in 2019.
The travel and tourism sector is one of the sectors most affected by the Corona pandemic during 2020, and its effects on these sectors are expected to continue until 2024.
