2022 to be a year of recovery for the travel industry

2022 to be a year of recovery for the travel industry

Travellers can look to 2022 as the year in which they can finally put their vacation and holiday plans back on the table, as a growing number of international destinations open up their borders and effective Covid-19 vaccination programmes eliminate the need for long quarantne periods, experts said.

The latest research by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has revealed that as the global travel & tourism sector begins to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic, its contribution to the global economy could reach $8.6 trillion this year. In 2019, the sector generated nearly $9.2 trillion to the global economy. However, in 2020, the pandemic brought the sector to an almost complete standstill, causing a massive 49.1 per cent drop - a loss of nearly $4.5 trillion. The WTTC has noted that if the recovery of the sector continues to pick up pace, then its contribution to global GDP could reach just 6.4 per cent behind pre-pandemic levels.

“Tourism has suffered a terrible pandemic, and the good news is that 2022 will be a year of recovery for the travel industry,” said Raja Mir Wasim, manager at Galadari International Travel Services (ITS). “As the borders have opened up, we have seen a