UNWTO: record 1.5 billion international tourist arrivals in 2019

In 2019, 1.5 billion tourist arrivals were registered worldwide, which is 4% more than a year earlier, the World tourism organization (UNWTO) said.

According to it, in 2019, the global tourist flow was affected by "uncertainty around Brexit, the collapse of tour operator Thomas Cook, geopolitical and social tensions and the global economic downturn." 

However, international tourist arrivals have increased in all regions of the world. The Middle East was the most successful in this regard, where the number of tourists increased by 8% in 2019, while in the Asia-Pacific region this figure did not exceed 5%. 

Europe, which remains the most popular tourist destination, experienced a 4% increase in the number of tourists.

However, in the Americas, this figure is only 2%, which is attributed by UNWTO to social and political instability in a number of countries in the region.

Finally, a 9% increase in the number of international tourist arrivals in North Africa allowed the entire continent to increase tourist traffic by 4%.

By 2020, UNWTO forecasts international tourism growth of 3-4%, partly due to important events such as the 2020 Olympic games in Tokyo and Expo 2020 in Dubai.