Spain, France and Germany top the world travel and tourism rankings
TravelBizNews —
Geneva, Switzerland: Spain, France and Germany continue to top the travel and tourism rankings in the World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2017.
The report ranks 136 countries across 14 separate dimensions, revealing how well countries could deliver sustainable economic and societal benefits through their travel and tourism sector.
The global travel and tourism sector accounts for 10% of global GDP, grows faster than other sectors and provides one in 10 jobs according to the report.
The top three in the ranking – Spain, France and Germany – have secured their position having world-class natural and cultural resources, outstanding infrastructure and hospitality services.
Traditional strong travel and tourism destinations, including Japan (fourth), the United Kingdom (fifth), the United States (sixth, down two places), Australia (seventh), Italy (eighth), Canada (ninth) and Switzerland (10th), have also made it in the top 10.
While advanced economies still hold the top spots in the ranking, 12 of the top 15 most improved countries are emerging markets, with Asia’s as exponents. Asia’s largest markets are not only becoming larger source markets but also more attractive destinations.
Almost all of the region’s countries improved their ranking. Except for Japan, Hong Kong (11th, up two), China (15th, up two), Republic of Korea (19th, up 10) and Malaysia (26th) also made it to the top 30, while India made the largest leap in the top 50 (up 12 places) to land in 40th place.
“The rise of Asia’s giants shows that the Asian Tourism Century is becoming a reality,” said Tiffany Misrahi, Community Lead of the Aviation, Travel and Tourism Industries, World Economic Forum.
“To reach their potential, the majority of countries still have more to do, from enhancing security, promoting their cultural heritage, building their infrastructure and creating stronger visa policies.”
“The increasing importance of demand from emerging markets and technology are changing the travel and tourism sector’s landscape at a fast rate,” said Roberto Crotti, Economist, World Economic Forum. “The capacity of countries to respond to and embrace these structural shifts will determine the future success of destinations.”
The World Economic Forum produced the report in collaboration with our data partners Bloom Consulting, Deloitte, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the UNWTO and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC).
April 2017
