This year, foreign visitors are expected to spend a record 800 billion euros in Europe. This is according to a recent report by the European Travel Commission. Many visitors from the United States in particular flock to Europe. Tourist spending in Europe is likely to increase by 13.7 percent compared to last year. Most of this spending, at 72 percent, takes place in Western Europe, according to the report.
The number of tourists from outside Europe is 6 percent higher this year than in 2019, the last year before the coronavirus pandemic. Europe remains especially popular among Americans, partly because inflation in the United States is more persistent than in Europe, the researchers said. The number of visitors from East Asian countries is also increasing.
Destinations in Northern Europe are gaining popularity. For example, the number of overnight stays by foreign tourists in Denmark (plus 38 percent), Norway (plus 18 percent) and Sweden (plus 9 percent) is growing significantly. In addition, less traditional or crowded destinations in southern Europe, such as Croatia and Malta, are becoming increasingly popular. In Albania, a growth of 86 percent is even expected in the number of overnight stays by tourists compared to the pre-corona year of 2019.
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