EU tourism will see slow recovery till 2024

Thursday, December 9, 2021

Although European travel demand is expecting a major recovery due to the high vaccination rates in Europe, volumes are still far from the pre-pandemic times, and that will not be exceeded until 2024, according to the latest ‘European Tourism Trends & Prospects’ quarterly report from the European Travel Commission (ETC). Pre-pandemic levels of European medical travel are also not likely to be achieved until 2024.

The COVID-19 vaccine rollout was important for the easing of entry requirements and boosting the appeal of travel during the summer season. However, the report says that vaccination efforts will not be enough. With the coming winter months, it is vital that Europe further establishes the freedom of movement by implementing more holistic and coherent approaches for travel – both within and outside the EU.

Although the report does not specifically mention medical travel, European medical travel trends majorly follow those of tourism.

Despite a strong summer rebound, international tourist arrivals to Europe are expected to be 60% below 2019 levels by the end of 2021.

The pressure to get vaccinated is increasing. Austria has started implementing a nationwide lockdown for the 2 million people who are unvaccinated or who haven’t recently recovered from COVID-19. Germany is bringing a new law to stop unvaccinated people from going out to work. Slovakia has banned unvaccinated people from wellness centers. Other European countries are also planning their own measures.

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