Travel and tourism worldwide grew at an average 3.4 per cent annually over the past four years, above the 2.3 per cent increase in the global economy, according to the World Economic Forum.

Such performance, the WEF pointed out in its latest Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report, indicated the travel and tourism sector’s resilience to economic shocks.

The World Travel & Tourism Council reports even more good tidings: growth in the sector could be as high as four per cent annually, faster than financial services, transport and manufacturing.

This means the travel and tourism sector continues to account for a large party of the global economy – about nine per cent or $7 trillion – notwithstanding slow economic growth in advanced economies and geopolitical tensions in certain areas.

Also, the number of inter­national passengers continues to grow. The WEF’s world Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) indicates that “new middle classes” from countries like China as well as senior travellers from the West and the millennial generation “are increasingly shaping the travel and tourism industry”.

Despite the economic ills it faced, Spain for the first time features top in the index. The WEF attributes this to the country’s cultural resources, infrastructure and adaptation to digital consumption habits. “The diversity in the top 30 shows that a country does not have to be wealthy to have a flourishing tourism sector,” WEF economist Roberto Crotti said.

He thinks many countries should still do more to address travel and tourism challenges and mentions specifically visa policies, the better promotion of cultural heritage, environment protection and ICT readiness.

Spain seems to have done just that and is reaping the fruit. The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report says Spain’s top ranking is helped by a world class ranking in cultural resources (first globally), its ability to support online searches for entertainment (fourth) and the “excellent” infrastructure.

Six of the top 10 countries listed in the TTCI are European: Spain (1), France (2), Germany (3), the UK (5), Switzerland (6) and Italy (8). The other four are the US (4), Australia (7), Japan (9) and Canada (10).

For the record, Malta ranks 40th out of the 141 countries covered.

The report and the index were released just days after Germany announced that incoming tourism had increased at a faster rate than the European average last year.

For the fifth time since 2010, Germany was the second most popular destination worldwide for European travellers with 49.7 million trips (up four per cent over 2013).

Spain was first with 55 million trips (+seven per cent) and France third (38.2 million trips, + three per cent).

“With growth of seven per cent in the holiday travel segment, we are not only comfortably above the average European growth rate of four per cent, we are also establishing ourselves as a traditional holiday destination for European travellers. The trips made to Germany from overseas in 2014 were also predominantly holidays. Almost half of all US visitors, 64 per cent of Chinese travellers and 74 per cent of Arab guests who came here were holidaymakers,” Petra Hedorfer, CEO of the German National Tourist Board told the German Travel Mart held in Erfurt.

Last year, Germany posted a total of 75.6 million overnight stays by international visitors. Europe continues to be the biggest source of inbound tourism, accounting for about 75 per cent of the total.

As if to confirm what the WEF noted in terms of ICT readiness, Germany acknowledges that it must adopt a multi-challenging strategy to be able to face inter­national competition.

Statistics released by the German national tourist board shows that 80 per cent of those travelling to Germany look up a booking site, 22 per cent seek direct accommodation, 17 per cent go through a travel agency and three per cent contact a tourist office.

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