ETC: European tourism recovery continues into 2024, with travel expenditure expected to hit record numbers
Europe’s tourism industry is experiencing a robust recovery in the first months of 2024. Based on data from reporting destinations, foreign arrivals (+7.2%) and overnights (+6.5%) in the first quarter of the year surpassed 2019 figures. This continues the upward trend observed in 2023, which recorded foreign arrivals 1.2% below 2019 levels, and nights just 0.2% below. The recovery is largely driven by strong intra-regional travel fuelled by Germany, France, Italy, and the Netherlands. This is coupled with demand from the US, which continues to be Europe’s most important long-haul source market.
