The number of nights spent in tourist accommodation in the European Union in 2022 is close to pre-pandemic levels, the bloc’s statistics office Eurostat said on Wednesday.
The 27-nation bloc recorded 2.72 billion nights spent in tourist accommodation last year, just 5.6% below 2019 levels, before COVID-19 inflicted heavy losses on the tourism industry due to the closure of borders and confinements.
This number is an increase of 91.1% and 48.3% over 2020 and 2021 levels, respectively. The figures cover short-term accommodation in hotels and similar establishments, as well as camping grounds, RV parks and trailer parks.
SPAIN TOURISM REVENUES ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE BY 5% THIS YEAR COMPARED TO BEFORE THE PANDEMIC
“The sector appears to be making a strong recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic,” Eurostat said.
Domestic travel experienced the strongest recovery, already exceeding pre-pandemic levels by 0.7% to 1.53 billion nights, while international tourism was still 12.6% below, at 1.19 billion nights .
Tourists shelter under umbrellas during a heat wave in Toledo, Spain, on June 28, 2019.
(REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte)
Among individual EU states, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium experienced the largest increases in domestic and foreign travelers, surpassing 2019 figures by 12.3%, 3.9% and 0.5%, respectively, over those joined by Liechtenstein, Iceland and Norway that are not members of the EU. .
Latvia and Slovakia were among the slowest recovering countries in terms of overnight tourist numbers in 2022, only recovering slightly above 70% of 2019 levels.
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Looking ahead, 2023 “could see international tourism arrivals return to pre-pandemic levels in Europe and the Middle East,” the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) said in a statement on Tuesday.
The United Nations-led agency anticipates the recovery to last through 2023, with the recent lifting of COVID-19-related travel restrictions in China and robust demand from the United States, supported by a strong US dollar.
However, the UNWTO warns that the uncertain economic environment and geopolitical tensions may influence tourism behavior, with reduced spending, shorter trips and local travel.
