The World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) has released its 2023 Economic Impact Research (EIR), revealing the EU travel and tourism sector is forecast to reach 98% of the 2019 peak and contribute €1.44 billion to the economy this year, edging close to the 2019 pre-pandemic high of €1.47 billion.
WTTC is also forecasting that the sector will create more than 687 thousand jobs this year, recovering almost 90% of the jobs lost due to the Covid-19 pandemic and reaching more than 22.4 million, one in nine workers across the EU being employed in the travel and tourism sector.
The travel and tourism sector in the EU is recovering strongly with high visitor demand.
Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO
“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”, said Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO.
Last year, the travel and tourism sector’s GDP contribution grew by 40.5% to reach more than €1.37 billion, representing 8.7% of the bloc’s economy and edging closer to the 2019 high of 9.6% of the economy. In 2022 the sector also created 2 million more jobs compared to the previous year, having reached 21.8 million – one in ten 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. “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% behind 2019 numbers”, explained Simpson.
Last year also saw the return of international travellers heading to the EU with spending from overseas visitors growing 81% year on year, reaching almost €385 billion. Meanwhile, domestic visitor spend fully recovered in 2022, exceeding the pre-pandemic high of €809 billion, having already reached €814 billion.
For the next 10 years, the global tourism body is forecasting that the sector will grow its GDP contribution to almost €1.9 billion by 2033, representing more than 10% of the EU economy, and will employ over 26.3 million people across the region, with one in eight EU residents working in the travel and tourism.
