Tourism Powerhouses Identified in New WTTC Ranking

China, the USA and India have taken the top three spots in the World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) new Travel & Tourism Power and Performance Report.

Using WTTC’s annual economic impact data, this new report ranks the performance of 185 countries over the last seven-year period, combining four indicators: contribution of travel and tourism to GDP, international visitor spend, domestic tourism spend and capital investment in tourism.

The WTTC says that includinf domestic spend and investment allows for a more rounded measure of performance and prioritisation than the more usual measures of GDP contribution and international spend.

WTTC President and CEO, Gloria Guevara, said, “World Tourism Day is the global celebration of a sector that contributes 10.4% of the world’s GDP and generates 313 million jobs. WTTC’s new report outlines power and performance rankings which showcase countries that have been most successful in growing their tourism sectors across the board.”

The report includes two rankings. The ‘Power’ ranking looks at those countries whose travel and tourism industry has grown most in absolute terms over the past seven years. These countries are those which are powering travel and tourism growth. The top ten countries in the Power ranking are:

1. China
2. USA
3. India
4. Mexico
5. United Kingdom
6. Spain
7. Turkey
8. Canada
9. Indonesia
10. = Australia and United Arab Emirates

The ‘Performance’ ranking looks at those countries whose travel and tourism industry has grown most quickly in percentage terms over the past seven years. These countries are those which are maximising the opportunity of tourism to drive economic development. The top ten countries in the Performance ranking are:

1. Myanmar
2. Iraq
3. Georgia
4. Rwanda
5. Iceland
6. Nicaragua
7. Qatar
8. Congo
9. Armenia
10. Ivory Coast

“Notably, G20 countries dominate the league, representing 12 of the top 20 countries, displaying once again the importance of travel and tourism both to mature markets and the global economy. Then, the emergence of up-and-coming countries highlights the central role that tourism can play within developing economies,” Guevara added. “WTTC advocates that such growth is driven by strong travel facilitation policies, sustainable and proactive planning, and robust infrastructures that can withstand crises. Under such management, travel and tourism can thrive, as in the case of Indonesia where radical visa reform has been matched by a rapid growth in international tourist arrivals in the last seven years. WTTC recognises countries who have worked strategically to capitalise on the economic benefits of the travel and tourism sector and realise opportunities for continued growth. To this end, we invite government, policymakers and industry leaders to share their case studies with us as part of WTTC’s new recognition programme, which will identify proven methods for success and promote best practice across the globe.”

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