MADRID – International tourist arrivals reached 924 million in 2008, up 16 million over 2007, representing a growth of two percent, according to figures released by the UNWTO. This growth builds on the strong results of the first part of the year, before the collapse of the financial markets.
Tourism demand slowed significantly through the year under the influence of an extremely volatile world economy, undermining both consumer and business confidence and resulting in the current global economic recession.
The UNWTO said the second half of 2008 saw growth come to a standstill with the number of international arrivals declining slightly; a trend which is expected to continue in 2009.
According to the January 2009 issue of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer, international tourism is expected to stagnate or even decline slightly during the year. But, there is still a high degree of uncertainty and much will depend on the evolving economic conditions. If the economy starts to show signs of an earlier recovery, international tourism might grow slightly in 2009 but, if the economy deteriorates further, then the current forecast might be revised downwards.