SkiftStats: European tourism to decline 1% in 2012

Every new report on tourism/travel numbers in Europe present different data. While IATA’s report showed slowing growth for Europe, the latest data from European Travel Commission (ETC), shows more optimism on the Q2 2012 numbers, mainly based on tourism and hotel data.

Some highlights from the report, and full report embedded below:
• Air travel continues to show some encouraging signs, with European airline passenger growth around 6% through mid-June while load factors have strengthened.
• The uncertain economic backdrop is not yet causing significant falls in tourism demand, but the trend is of slowing growth. There are signs of mixed performance and slowing throughout Europe.
• Hotel data show signs of mixed performance throughout Europe. While Central and Eastern European destinations have performed well, a significant number of Southern European destinations have recorded falls in hotel occupancy during the first half of the
year. Overall, a moderation in hotel occupancy rates in most European sub-regions is apparent.
• Tourism arrivals data for the first half of 2012 reveal an uneven picture of growth in the major European source markets. Meanwhile, Russia continues to be a star performer, with strong growth in all markets. While demand in Japan continues to recover, the struggle for US market share continues.
•  The report forecasts visits to all of Europe are expected to decline nearly 1% in 2012 with only moderate growth of 0.9% expected for 2013.

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