WTTC predicts the U.S. Travel & Tourism to come back strongly this year

Thursday, February 10, 2022

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism sector, has announced its latest economic modeling, projecting that the U.S. Travel & Tourism could come back strongly this year, reaching $2 trillion in U.S. GDP contribution and surpassing pre-pandemic levels by 6.2%.

“Our latest forecast shows the recovery significantly picking up this year as infection rates subside and travelers continue benefitting from the protection offered by the vaccine and boosters,” said Julia Simpson, president & CEO of WTTC.

Simpson said further, “As travel restrictions ease and consumer confidence returns, we expect a welcome release of pent-up Travel & Tourism demand. That, together with what we hope will be a strong consumer-led economic recovery, creates a bullish outlook for the sector.”

Projections by the WTTC and Oxford Economics show that if the vaccine and booster rollout continue with speed, and restrictions to international travel are eased around the world throughout the year, tourism’s contribution of almost $2 trillion to the U.S. economy could beat 2019 levels ($1.87 trillion) by more than six percent. Other findings include:

• U.S. domestic Travel & Tourism spending is predicted to reach more than $1.1 trillion for the year, exceeding pre-pandemic levels by 11.3%
• International traveler spending in the U.S. could see growth of $113 billion during the year, reaching nearly $155 billion, which is marginally below (14%) 2019 levels
• Employment in tourism could also exceed pre-pandemic levels, reaching around 16.8 million jobs, above pre-pandemic levels by 200,000 jobs

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