By putting us under house arrest, the Covid crisis will have had a profound impact on the tourism sector. Closed borders, prohibited travel, quarantines: the measures taken to stem the epidemic have hit the travel industry hard, which, five years after the events, finally seems to be recovering.
In 2024, more than 1.4 billion people will have traveled internationally, a figure almost equal to that of 2019.
Europe at the top of the destinations
With 747 million visitors in 2024, Europe is emerging as the most popular continent for travelers, observes CNN. Despite geopolitical tensions, particularly linked to the conflict in Ukraine, the region has attracted a record number of visitors. France, the great champion, welcomed 100 million tourists, confirming its status as a flagship destination.
According to Atout France, several major events have boosted these figures: the Paris Olympic Games, the highly anticipated reopening of Notre-Dame and the commemorations of the 80th anniversaries of the Normandy Landings. Spain follows France, with a record 98 million visitors.
New horizons
Apart from the usual destinations, smaller countries have climbed onto the tourist scene in 2024, such as Qatar, which saw its arrivals jump by 137%. Destinations such as Albania, El Salvador and Andorra have also recorded remarkable increases.
But this growth is not without consequences. Anti-tourism movements have developed across the world, notably in Spain and Italy. New measures on seasonal rentals and visitor quotas are put in place to limit the effects of overtourism. In 2025, the challenge will be to reconcile growth and sustainability, recalls the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), which encourages the discovery of less frequented destinations. Specializing in tourist guides, the Fodor publishing house has also revealed its ranking of destinations to avoid. A “No List” designed to raise awareness among travelers about places that are victims of their success, where attendance now exceeds reception capacities.
Johanna Seban is a journalist for the Travel section of Geo.fr. After studying in London and then training in journalism at the CFPJ in Paris, in 2003 she joined the editorial team of a cultural weekly. Attached to the music department, she stayed there for 12 years, carrying out numerous reports and interviews with people with impenetrable Scottish accents. His desire for independence coupled with a tendency to move around then encouraged him to embark on the adventure of freelance journalism and work simultaneously for different national media. Her field of investigation then broadens, covering arts, travel, town planning, architecture, mobility… At the same time, Johanna participates in the writing of collective works devoted to travel in its new variations (train travel, exploration of Greater Paris, family adventures) and swaps the pen for the microphone for the production of a cultural podcast. She joins the Travel section of Geo.fr in spring 2024 with the desire to explore travel in its societal dimension – ecotourism, local travel, slow travel (even if she is wary of the “slow” label, a fantastic greenwashing tool ). And to infuse his reports with a little of what motivates him on a daily basis – walking, architecture and facades, the Breton islands, train stations, maps or photography.
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