After almost two years of pandemic induced quarantine, the travel and tourism industry has finally started to recover this year. People have been eager to travel again, even more so than before Covid, wanting to make up for lost time.
Euromonitor, a UK-based market research company, has examined the most popular cities around the world to see which ones performed best this year. Their Top 100 City Destinations Index 2022 is built on 6 pillars: economic and business performance, tourism performance, tourism policy and attractiveness, tourism infrastructure, health and safety and, last but not least, sustainability.
“Sustainability will remain central to the development of urban destinations, with more sustainable practices being seen by both players and consumers as travel and tourism becomes more mindful and responsible”, says Euromonitor.
While 2022 has been a positive year for travel and tourism, the road to full post-pandemic recovery is long, and government support remains critical across all regions.
Euromonitor
Europe leads the ranking, with 40 cities among the top 100 and 8 out of the top 10. Only Dubai and New York managed to climb in the ranking between the world’s favourite European destinations. Paris maintained its first spot, while Dubai, helped by the delayed Expo 2020 Dubai, which brought 12 million visitors to the UAE city, ranked second.
Besides having the most cities in the leader board, three European countries lead the way, having the most cities among the top 100 destinations in 2022. Italy has 6, with Rome in 5th place, Spain has 5, with Madrid and Barcelona in 4th and 9th place respectively, and Greece has 4, although none of them made it to the top 10.
The second region represented in the ranking is Asia and Australasia, with 28 cities among the top 100, 26 being from Asia. None of the cities in this region made it to the top 10, but Singapore is the leading destination, in the 15th place, followed by Tokyo, in the 20th. The late removal of Covid-related travel restrictions has impeded a stronger recovery of tourism, however, tourism policy and attractiveness, along with health and safety, are the two pillars that saw the best improvements for the region in 2022.
The Americas have 18 cities in the top 100, being the third most represented region, with New York managing to secure the 10th position. Euromonitor indicates the primary reason for improved performance has been the strong recovery of international demand.
The Middle East and Africa is the least represented region in the ranking, with only 14 cities, two less than in 2021, but Dubai maintained its position as top destination in the region and secured 2nd place overall.
