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European Travel Performance in 2012 was Better than Planned

The European Travel Commission has published its report dedicated to European tourism in 2012. As it is clearly seen from the report, the results for the previous year are better than forecasted.

According to the report, the majority of emerging and established destinations in Europe posted growth. After rather a strong 2011, when the growth of inbound tourism estimated 7%, it was hard to expect the continuation of this trend, but in 2012 the growth estimated 4%. Even negative economic climate and financial crisis in the Eurozone didn’t stop the growth of tourism. Not only international tourists were visiting Europe more actively, but Europeans themselves made more travels within the region. The tourism sector seems to be one of rare industries that keep growing despite tough economic situation.

If analysing by countries, emerging markets posted the highest growth in the number of foreign visitors. Opposite to such well-established markets as France or Italy, the best results were reached by Iceland (+20%), Lithuania (+12%), and Romania (+10%). Among the popular and famous destinations the best results were posted by Germany (+8%), Austria (+5%), and Spain (+5%).

The majority of fast-growing European destinations report that in 2012 they were visited by a lot more tourists from the US and Japan. If taking into consideration outbound European markets, Russia was the fastest growing one. Tourists from Germany and the Netherlands also travelled in the region more often.

In 2013, the forecast for the global economy is more optimistic comparing to the 2012. Many experts assume that the European Union will show signs of recovery in 2013, and they will become stronger in 2014. Persistent troubles in some countries of Europe will cause a negative impact on their tourism. On average, experts forecast growth of 1-3% in 2013.

21.02.2013

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