Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary General, UNWTO said: “The growth of tourism in recent years confirms that the sector is today one of the most powerful drivers of economic growth and development.

“It is our responsibility to manage it in a sustainable manner and translate this expansion into real benefits for all countries, and particularly, to all local communities, creating opportunities for jobs and entrepreneurship and leaving no one behind.

“This is why UNWTO is focussing 2019 on education, skills and job creation.”

International tourist arrivals in Europe reached 713m in 2018, a +6% increase over a strong 2017. Growth was driven by Southern and Mediterranean Europe (+7%), Central and Eastern Europe (+6%) and Western Europe (+6%). Results in Northern Europe were flat due to the weakness of arrivals to the United Kingdom.

Asia and the Pacific (+6%) recorded 343m international tourist arrivals in 2018. Arrivals in southeast Asia grew +7%, followed by North-East Asia (+6%) and South Asia (+5%). Oceania showed more moderate growth at +3%.

The Americas (+3%) welcomed 217m international arrivals in 2018, with mixed results across destinations. Growth was led by North America (+4%) and followed by South America (+3%). Central America and the Caribbean (both -2%) achieved mixed results, the latter reflecting the impact of the September 2017 hurricanes Irma and Maria.

Data from Africa points to a 7% increase in 2018 (North Africa at +10% and Sub-Saharan +6%), reaching an estimated 67m arrivals.

The Middle East (+10%) showed solid results last year consolidating its 2017 recovery, with international tourist arrivals reaching 64m.

CURRENT TRENDS

Based on current trends, economic prospects and the UNWTO Confidence Index, UNWTO forecasts international arrivals to grow +3% to +4% next year, more in line with historic growth trends.

According to UNWTO, the stability of fuel prices tends to translate into affordable air travel, while air connectivity continues to improve in many destinations, facilitating the diversification of source markets.

Trends also show strong outbound travel from emerging markets, especially India and Russia, where arrivals duty free has now been introduced, but also from smaller Asian and Arab source markets.

At the same time, the global economic slowdown, uncertainty related to Brexit, and geopolitical and trade tensions may prompt a ‘wait and see’ attitude among investors and travellers, UNWTO indicated.

Pololikashvili added: “Digitalisation, new business models, more affordable travel and societal changes are expected to continue shaping our sector, so both destinations and companies need to adapt if they want to remain competitive.”

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