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‘2007 to be fourth year of sustained growth’

World tourism demand continues to exceed expectations, showing resilience against extraneous factors. According to the latest issue of the UNWTO World Tourism Barometer:

# In the first eight months of 2006, international tourist arrivals totaled 578 million worldwide (+4.5%), up from 553 million in the same period of 2005, a year which saw an all-time record of 806 million people traveling internationally.

# Growth is expected to continue in 2007 at a pace of around 4% worldwide.
The expected 4% growth for 2007, though slightly slower than in previous years, is much in line with the UNWTO long-term forecast growth rate of 4.1% a year through 2020.

The short-term outlook remains very positive, especially against the background of a strong world economy and as favorable exchange rates continue to encourage European and Asian travelers. International tourism is likely to remain buoyant unless major incidents occur.

With an expected rate of +10.6% for 2006, Africa is this year again the world's regional leader in terms of growth. Between January and August, international tourist arrivals increased by 9.8%.

Asia and the Pacific was the world's second fastest-growing region in the first eight months of 2006 (+8.3%). While south and southeastern destinations surpassed the average growth and Northeast Asia was close to doing it, arrivals to Oceania were on the negative side.

Despite some sharp differences, the region's overall performance is remarkable, especially considering that the tourism sector has continued to suffer this year from a succession of natural disasters, health scares and political unrest.

Algiers meet inspired by tourism upswing

The 79th session of the UNWTO Executive Council meeting in Algiers, attended by 38 ministerial delegations from around the world, welcomed the estimated 4.6% growth of international arrivals in 2006. This market strength is forecast to continue through 2007, at around 4% - the fourth year of sustained growth in international tourism and in line with UNWTO's long-term vision.

UNWTO Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli, particularly underscored Africa's strong 2006 forecast, where tourism arrivals are expected to increase by 10.6% through this year.

Frangialli said, "This African tourism success story is particularly important for the fight against poverty and the progress towards the Millennium Development Goals, where this sector can play a pivotal role for every state on the continent. Africa's rich supply of natural assets and unique cultures provides the whole continent with a special opportunity to grow and prosper in the coming years."

Chinese Outbound Tourism Market

The UNWTO and the European Travel Commission (ETC) have commissioned a report from the European Tour Operators Association (ETOA) that explores the prospects of China as a source market.

Selected background findings: One of the most widely quoted statistics on China is UNWTO's forecast that China will produce 100 million outbound tourists by 2020. This figure includes all outbound travel from the Chinese mainland, including trips to Hong Kong and Macau. In 2005, 71% of all Chinese outbound visitors were to these two areas. A further 17% traveled to destinations within Asia. Roughly 5% went to Europe.

Chinese outbound travelers spent a total of US$ 21.8 billion abroad in 2005, up from US$ 19.1 billion in 2004. These are just some of the preliminary findings of the ETC/UNWTO report on the Chinese Outbound Tourism Market, due to be launched at ITB Berlin 2007.