WTTC data says that the travel and tourism sector’s GDP contribution grew by 40.5 pc last year
Travel forum World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) latest 2023 Economic Impact Research (EIR) reveals the EU travel and tourism sector isset to reach 98 pc of the 2019 peak this year with an expected contribution of EUR 1.44 billion, close to the 2019 pre-pandemic high of EUR 1.47 billion, according to a statement by WTTC.
WTTC adds that the sector will create more than 687,000 jobs this year, recovering almost 90 pc of the jobs lost due to the Covid-19 pandemic to reach more than 22.4 million, with one in nine workers across the EU, in the travel and tourism sector.
Julia Simpson
“The travel and tourism sector in the EU is recovering strongly with high visitor demand. The number of jobs created by travel and tourism stands at 21.8 million, but by the end of this year it will reach nearly 22.5 million jobs, just 2 pc behind 2019 numbers,” Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, says.
The WTTC data says that the travel and tourism sector’s GDP contribution grew by 40.5 pc last year to reach more than EUR 1.37 billion, representing 8.7 pc of the Bloc’s economy, edging closer to the 2019 high of 9.6 pc of the economy. Last year the sector also created 2 million more jobs from the previous year to reach 21.8 million jobs, or one in 10 across the EU.
According to the global tourism body’s annual research, the sector has now recovered 3.1 million of the 3.6 million jobs lost during the pandemic. Last year also saw the return of international travellers heading to the EU with spending from overseas visitors growing 81 pc year on year, to reach almost EUR 385 billion.
Domestic visitors’ spend fully recovered in 2022, says WTTC, exceeding the pre-pandemic high of EUR 809 billion to reach EUR 814 billion.
“Travel and tourism is a key economic growth sector and driver of jobs in the EU due to the importance of the sector in so many countries such as Germany, Italy, Spain, and France. Our most recent Cities Economic Impact Report revealed that Paris remains the world’s most popular tourist destination,” says Simpson.
The global tourism body is forecasting that the sector will grow its GDP contribution to almost EUR 1.9 billion by 2033, more than 10 pc of the EU economy and will employ over 26.3 million people across the region, with one in eight EU residents working in the sector.
