WTTC reveals the US as the world’s biggest tourism market

The U.S. remains as the world’s biggest and most powerful Travel & Tourism market, according to the latest World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Economic Trends Report. Despite suffering long and damaging travel restrictions which did little to halt the spread of COVID-19 and only resulted in serious economic losses, the country reaffirmed its top ranking.

Julia Simpson, WTTC president & CEO, said that their report shows the resilience of the Travel & Tourism sector, despite the impact of travel restrictions around the world which failed to halt the spread of the virus. She added that despite a challenging macro environment, Travel & Tourism has bounced back, and the world is traveling again with some exceptions. 

However, while its number one position was retained, the U.S. Travel & Tourism sector’s contribution to the nation’s economy fell by USD 700 billion in 2019, to just under USD 1.3 trillion last year. Research by Oxford Economics for WTTC shows there has been no change in the top three countries – with China second and Germany third. But the rankings are illusionary as the top economies bolstered their numbers through domestic travel, while international visitor numbers plummeted.

In the U.S., International traveller spend rankings saw it toppled from its pre-pandemic top position.But despite the challenges of the past two years, the new report from the global tourism body shows business travel is on the road to recovery.

Source/Read more: US remains the world’s biggest travel market: WTTC

Author: Deb Davad