Top European countries with visitors growth; Iceland, Cyprus, Portugal and more 

tourism

The European Travel Commission has released a report pointing that European Tourism looks set for solid growth in 2017.

According the release, appetite for European Tourism remains strong, highlighting the continued attractiveness of its destinations.

Europe welcomed 615 million international tourists arrivals in 2016, a moderate 2% increase compared to 20151. Although recent events do not seem to have affected demand significantly early this year, perceptions of safety remain of utmost importance for continued growth. The outlook for 2017 is upbeat despite expected headwinds from safety concerns, uncertainty surrounding “Brexit” and potential policy changes from the new US administration.

According to the European Travel Commission’s latest report, “European Tourism – Trends & Prospects”, almost one in two reporting destinations saw double-digit arrivals growth during the first months of 2017. Iceland (+54%) enjoyed the latest growth supported by an ongoing surge in air capacity on transatlantic routes while Cyprus(+26%), Portugal (+25%) and Malta (+23%) proved their success in battling seasonality. Other top performers were Bulgaria (+19%), Finland (+18%) and Estonia (+13%) which were not impacted by security concerns that exist with other European destination. While Switzerland (+3%) reversed its past trend by taking advantage of its key position as a winter destination. Turkey (_8%) is still seeing a downward trend that began in 2015.

“At times of dwindling market share and increased competition, European leaders must cooperate to collectively formulate appropriate policies and actions aimed at fostering Europe’s image as a tourism destination” said Eduardo Santander, Executive Director of ETC.

Read more details of the report HERE

Source: European Travel Commission

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