Ghana is one of the major destinations for tourists traveling to West Africa. As an English-speaking country, the majority of its visitors come from the United States, Nigeria, and the United Kingdom. For instance, in 2023, nearly 134,000
from the United States. In that year, around 1.1 million overall tourist arrivals were registered. This represented a sharp increase compared to the three preceding years which had showcased a gradually rising trend vis-à-vis the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Most of the
Tourists' spending behavior
Tourism contributes to Ghana's economic growth. The
overall international tourist spending in the country stood at around 946 million U.S. dollars in 2020, which, however, was a notable drop from the year before. As of 2021, almost 80 percent of the
tourist expenditure was for leisure, while business spending made up the remaining 20 percent. Specifically, the highest
average daily tourist expenditure is on accommodation, entertainment, and food and beverages. For instance, a tourist spent an average of 477 U.S. dollars per day on accommodation as of 2023.
Tourism contribution to employment
Also contributing to the economy is employment in tourism. There were over 735,000
jobs in travel and tourism in Ghana in 2021. In terms of
direct contribution to employment, the industry registered a share of 5.7 percent in 2022. Although this showed a lower percentage compared to previous years, the growing interest in tourism still serves as a point of growth for the industry. Furthermore, as part of the efforts to boost tourism in Ghana, the government launched the 2019 Year of Return, which invited people from all over the world to commemorate 400 years since the arrival of enslaved Africans in Jamestown, Virginia. Consequently, the nation's economy was boosted. That year,
travel and tourism contributed over 3.7 billion U.S. dollars to Ghana's GDP, a value higher than in the four years that followed.
Hotels and accommodation
The number of tourist accommodation establishments in Ghana has steadily increased in recent years. In 2020, however, a sharp decline was observed, possibly due to the heavy impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, as of 2023, over 4,600 enterprises were licensed to provide accommodation services in the country. Tourists
spend an average of 8-14 days in these accommodation establishments, the majority of which are
3-5-star hotels. In Greater Accra, the region with the nation's capital, Movenpick Ambassador Hotel and Golden Tulip Hotel had the
highest number of hotel rooms in 2022, as each of them had more than 230 rooms. Overall, hotels and restaurants in the nation contributed an estimated 3.9 billion Ghanaian cedis, some 257.3 million U.S. dollars, to Ghana's GDP in 2022.
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