For the first time in history, the number of International travellers has topped a BILLION in one year! During 2012 a total of 1.035 billion passengers travelled, which is a growth of 4%. A further growth of 4% is expected in 2013.
UNWTO (The World Tourism Organization) is the United Nations agency and they have just released figures based on their World Tourism Barometer;
- Europe is the most visited continent in the world and last year received 535 million international visitors, which is a 3% increase
- Asia Pacific saw the biggest increase in travellers, with a 7% rise in numbers, with 233 million visiting in total
- The Americas received 162 million visitors, which is a 4% increase over the previous year
- Africa recovered from a previous dip to hit a record new high for tourist arrivals; 52 million in total which is a 6% rise
- The countries that saw the biggest growth in terms of tourist spending were; Hong Kong 16%, USA 10%, UK 6% and Germany 5%.
What do you think? Leave your comments below…
