Asia-Pacific Struggling to Regain Tourism Momentum

Data from the UN Tourism dashboard shows that 1.3 billion international tourist arrivals were recorded worldwide for 2023, roughly 160 million short of 2019 levels. Tourism receipts, however, surpassed pre-pandemic levels by around $40 million. This potentially traces back to price increases rather than increased tourist activity. With 707 million international arrivals, Europe remained the region with the highest tourist volume this past year. While some world regions have already surpassed their 2019 levels, one area in particular hasn't regained momentum.

African countries are short 2.6 million of the 69 million international arrivals recorded in 2019, while the Americas are behind 19 million inbound tourists. The Middle East surpassed its 2019 levels by 22 million, which underlines the importance of airports like Dubai International Airport and Hamad International Airport as travel hubs and the attractiveness of the Arabian Peninsula as a tourism destination. Asia and the Pacific is only at 65 percent of the 2019 figure for international arrivals, which translates to 237 million for 2023.

Looking at total passenger throughput, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recorded 4.4 billion scheduled passengers across 36 million flights for 2023, slightly below 2019 levels, in their most recent factsheet. By 2025, the combined revenues of all IATA members are expected to cross the one trillion dollar threshold, while passenger levels are estimated to rise above five billion.