UN reveals timing of post-pandemic tourism recovery

It may take tourism around four years to recover from financial losses, Report informs, citing Secretary-General of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Zurab Pololikashvili.

He noted that in 2020 the number of international tourist trips declined by 74%, with the global tourism flow dropping by 1 billion trips compared to 2019, all due to quarantine restrictions. The epidemic also resulted in 100 million to 120 million job cuts in tourism.

Pololikashvili said coronavirus still affects the sphere in 2021 since new strains provoke new restrictions around the world.

According to UNWTO, in 2021, the number of tourists is expected to grow by 22-55%.

According to previous reports, tourism lost $935B during the first ten months of 2020 due to coronavirus and related restrictions.