Tourism still has a chance to recover despite many difficulties and challenges. (Photo: Vietnam+)
Hanoi (VNA) - Global tourism is showing positive recovery momentum after the COVID-19 pandemic. Vietnam’s tourism is also on the rise. However, the world's green economy still faces many challenges.
Data from the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) shows that the green economy's rapid recovery continued in 2023. In the first quarter of this year, international arrivals reached 80% of the pre-pandemic level (an estimated 235 million international tourist arrivals, more than double the same period in 2022).
The Middle East was a bright spot for the world tourism. This was the only region where the number of visitors increased by 15% compared to 2019 and the first region to recover the number of visitors before the COVID-19 pandemic in the first quarter of 2023.
Meanwhile, the number of visitors to Europe reached 90% of pre-pandemic levels, Africa and the Americas reached 88% and 85%, respectively.
Although the Asia and Pacific region sped up its recovery, reaching 54% of pre-pandemic levels, the region's recovery is expected to accelerate sharply as China re-opens its tourism market.
In Vietnam, the report on the socioeconomic situation in the first 4 months of 2023 published by the General Statistics Office shows optimistism in Vietnam's tourism in the first months of the year. (Photo: Vietnam+)
Thanks to the return of international tourists, revenue from international visitors to Vietnam has reached the milestone of 1 trillion USD in 2022, up 50% year-on-year.
By region, Europe recorded the best revenue from tourism in 2022 with nearly 550 billion USD, or 87% of pre-pandemic levels. Africa has recovered 75%, the Middle East 70% and the Americas 68% of pre-pandemic sales. Due to prolonged border closures, Asian destinations only achieved about 28% of 2019 revenue levels.
Q1 2023 results are in line with UNWTO scenarios for the year, forecasting international arrivals will recover from 80% to 95% of pre-pandemic levels. The UNWTO Panel of Experts expressed confidence in a strong peak season (May-August) in the northern hemisphere, as reflected in the latest UNWTO Confidence Index, which shows performance over the period. This segment is even better than 5.
In Vietnam, the report on the socioeconomic situation in the first 4 months of 2023 published by the General Statistics Office also shows optimism on the country's tourism in the first months of the year. Specifically, in April, international visitors to Vietnam were estimated at 984 thousand arrivals, 9.7 times higher than the same period last year.
In the first 4 months of 2023, international visitors to Vietnam were estimated at more than 3.68 million arrivals, 19.2 times higher than the same period last year. This number reaches 46% of the target of welcoming 8 million international visitors to Vietnam in 2023.
Despite the optimistic recovery momentum, global tourism in general and Vietnam’s tourism in particular also face many challenges. (Photo: Vietnam+)
However, the recovery of tourism also faces a number of challenges. According to the UNWTO Expert Panel, the economic situation remains a key factor influencing the effective recovery of international tourism in 2023. High inflation and rising oil prices have led to high transportation and accommodation costs. As a result, tourists are expected to increasingly seek cheaper and closer destinations. Uncertainty stemming from the Russia-Ukraine conflict and other rising geopolitical tensions continue to plague tourism recovery this year./.
