Brussels -- The European Travel Commission has just published its fourth quarterly report on European Tourism 2009 - Trends & Prospects.
Travel demand trends in the last three months of 2009 confirmed that the recovery was underway, although the growth was in large part due to comparisons with the low levels in late 2008. And the improvement, which benefited Europe less than most other regions of the world, came too late to make much difference to the final full-year results. In summary, for the travel and tourism industry, 2009 was undoubtedly a year to forget.
The outlook for growth in 2010 is more positive that it was three month ago – with more ‘risk’ to the upside. Europe’s tourism performance in the first half of 2010 will of course be aided by comparison with the depths of the recession in 2009. However, some significant downside risks remain, including security concerns and the possibility (although now deemed less likely) of a more virulent A(H1N1) pandemic.
Tourism Economics’ forecast remains muted for 2010 – in contrast to the situation in some previous recoveries, is does not expect a strong rebound.
For the full report, please click here.
The European Travel Commission is an association of National Tourism Organisations (NTOs). It was created in 1948 to promote Europe as a tourism destination to the long-haul markets outside Europe, originally in the USA and later in Canada, Latin America and Asia. It currently has 39 member NTOs, including 12 from outside the European Union. ETC is an independent body which is financed entirely by annual membership contributions and partnership funding. For further information, see ETC's corporate website: www.etc-corporate.org