OREANDA-NEWS. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, global tourism in 2021 may receive less revenue in the amount of 2 trillion US dollars. This was announced on Monday, November 29, according to the report of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). This figure is comparable to the amount of losses in 2020, but less than two years earlier.

Although UNWTO in July-September registered an increase in the number of tourist arrivals to destination countries by 58 percent compared to the same period in 2020, these values are 64 percent lower than in 2019. In August and September, the number of arrivals reached the highest level since the beginning of the pandemic, but still remained 63 percent lower than in 2019.

While Europe, as well as the Americas, showed relative growth in the third quarter of 2021, the number of arrivals in the Asia-Pacific region decreased by as much as 95 percent compared to 2019. A number of Asia-Pacific countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and China, have a policy of «zero tolerance» to COVID-19 and adhere to strict restrictions on international entry.

If we talk about the leading directions, then in Croatia, Mexico and Turkey, the strongest recovery was noted in the period from July to September. The Caribbean States, in turn, showed the highest rates among all the subregions indicated in the UNWTO report: the number of arrivals there increased by 55 percent compared to 2020.

According to the UNTWO report, «uneven vaccination rates around the world and new COVID-19 mutations may affect an already slow and fragile recovery». Concerns about the new, omicron variant of the virus have caused new travel restrictions in a number of countries. The report clarifies that — along with the pandemic — surges in oil prices, as well as disruption of global supply chains may have an impact on demand among tourists.