International tourism sees growth

The first half of 2013 observed a five per cent growth in international tourist arrivals as compared to the same period in 2012. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), tourist arrivals in the first half of 2013 reached almost 500 million.

Growth was above the three per cent to four per cent projection made at the beginning of the year and also exceeds the trend of the UNWTO long-term outlook survey ‘Tourism Towards 2030’, which estimated an increment of 3.8 per cent a year, states UNWTO.

According to the Advances Edition of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer released during the 20th General Assembly of UNWTO, destinations around the world welcomed an estimated 494 million overnight visitors in the first six months of 2013.

This represents an increase of five per cent or an additional 25 million international tourists compared to the same period of 2012. Growth was stronger in emerging economy destinations that observed an increment of six per cent than in advanced economies that observed an increment of four per cent, a trend which has marked the sector for many years now.

“The fact that international tourism grew above expectations confirms that travelling is now part of consumer patterns for an increasing number of people in both emerging and advanced economies,” states the UNWTO press release.

“This underlines need to rightly place tourism as one of key pillars of socio-economic development, being a leading contributor to economic growth, exports and jobs.” In a still uneven global economic environment, results were positive in all regions and sub regions.

source:the himalayan times,28 august 2013