WTTC data shows U.S. maintains position as biggest Travel & Tourism market despite suffering 41% slide in GDP

Some countries performed better than others due to clear rules and certainty for domestic and international travel

WTTC data shows U.S. maintains position as biggest Travel & Tourism market despite suffering 41% slide in GDP

May 12 - Latest data from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) shows the U.S. maintained its position as the largest global Travel & Tourism market, despite suffering a huge 41% fall in GDP last year.

China also kept its position as second biggest Travel & Tourism market, but experienced a harder GDP fall of 59.9% with Japan slightly improving its ranking - from fourth to third - shouldering a GDP fall nearly half that of China, of just 37%.

Meanwhile, the UK, which in 2019 ranked as the world’s fifth biggest Travel & Tourism market, fell three places to number eight, sustaining a punishing GDP fall of 62.3%.

Continuing travel restrictions, and unnecessary and crushing quarantines, caused it to suffer the biggest collapse of the 10 largest Travel & Tourism markets.

The figures from WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, come from its 2021 Economic Impact Report (EIR), which lays bare the devastating impact of COVID-19 travel restrictions.

WTTC’s 2021 Economic Impact Report (EIR) identified other leading global Travel & Tourism markets as suffering similar dramatic GDP falls.

Germany dropped one place from third to fourth position, following a 46.9% drop in the sector’s contribution towards GDP. Meanwhile, Italy rose one place from sixth to fifth, despite experiencing a 51% fall in GDP contribution.

Notably, France, the world’s popular destination in terms of international visitor numbers, rose one position from seventh to sixth, despite its contribution to GDP falling by almost half (48.8%).

WTTC 2021 EIR research revealed the global Travel & Tourism sector suffered a loss of almost US$4.5 trillion in 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19, with nearly 62 million jobs lost, representing a drop of 18.5%, leaving just 272 million employed across the industry globally.