Greece was among the most popular countries in Europe this summer, receiving the same number of tourists in July and August as it did in pre-pandemic 2019. It is followed by Poland with a fall of 9%, Spain – minus 12%, and the UK – minus 13% by 2019. Well, Turkey is in the lead in the summer rating.
Air travel to southeastern Europe has significantly exceeded pre-pandemic levels during the peak summer months of July and August. The ForwardKeys service, which has the most comprehensive and up-to-date database of air ticket sales, named the two largest destinations that exceeded the pre-pandemic level of international tourists. These are Turkey and Greece with plus 9 and 2 percent results respectively. Air travel to Albania increased by as much as 28%, although in absolute terms it is less than 1% of the European tourist flow.
None of the other major destinations recovered to their 2019 levels. Slovenia lost just 7%, Iceland lost 8%, and Portugal fell 10%.
Of the urban destinations, Istanbul did well, recording a 2% increase in foreign arrivals. It is followed by Athens with a drop of 7%, Reykjavik and Porto – by 8%, and Malaga – by 13%.
The main factors behind Turkey’s strong performance are the continued decline in the value of the Turkish lira.
Greece has fared reasonably well in terms of tourists throughout the pandemic, with relatively foreigner-friendly travel restrictions despite COVID-19.
The US was the strongest non-European market, hosting only 5% fewer tourists than in 2019. It is followed by Colombia and Israel with a decrease of 9%, South Africa – by 10%, Mexico – by 12%, and Canada and Kuwait – by 13%. Overall, markets outside the European continent declined by 31%.
European destinations could attract more travelers during the summer months if the aviation industry is better able to cope with the surge in travel demand in late spring and early summer. Had the disruptions been avoided, there would have been five percent more domestic flight bookings.
In July and August, air travel across Europe fell by 26%, but the outlook for the next three months is positive. As of August 31, flight bookings were 21% behind the same period in 2019, with Turkey and Greece outperforming 2019 by 20% and 5%, respectively. The next most heavily armored are currently Portugal at 3% behind, Iceland at minus 7%, and Spain at minus 15%.