International tourism has fared better than expected this year, but cannot escape the consequences of an escalation in the crisis in the eurozone.
Norway minister of trade and industry Trond Giske told the WTM Ministers’ Summit on Tuesday: “Europe is in more trouble now than two years ago.”
Giske said: “Greece has shown good growth in tourism, but even profitable projects cannot find financing. If that continues, tourism will be affected.
He added: “Greece is a small economy. If this crisis extends to Italy or to Spain, we will really be in trouble.”
Giske told the summit: “Tourism businesses are the least likely to come to my office to seek help. But there is a big difference between banks going bankrupt and countries going bankrupt.
“Two years ago governments could use lower interest rates and other measures to stimulate consumer demand. Now they can’t.” He added: “The problem is not demand. It is the financial situation – the banks are not lending.”
United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) secretary general Taleb Rifai reported global tourism arrivals rose 4.5% to the end of October this year.
He said: “Europe did surprisingly well: international arrivals grew 6%. Arrivals to Greece grew 14% in the 10 months and to Ireland 13%. All countries grew except in North Africa.”
Rifai said: “The UNWTO is often described as overly optimistic, but the data speaks for itself.”
However, he said: “It is not all good news. There are risks of recession ahead. Consumers and investors face mounting difficulties.”