UNWTO Shares World Travel Outcomes at FITCuba 2017

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04 May 2017 8:46pm
UNWTO Shares World Travel Outcomes at FITCuba 2017

The day of presentations at FITCuba 2017 began Thursday morning at the Playa Pesquero Hotel with a lecture on international travel news delivered by Alejandro Valera, deputy regional director of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) for the Americas.

The UNWTO representative referred to tourism trends, sector priorities and the importance of developing sustainable tourism.

"The tourism industry accounts for ten percent of the world's industry and six percent of all international trade. In 2016, there were 1,235 million arrivals and 47 million trips, up 3.9 percent from 2015.

"The trend of international tourism has continued to rise. In the northern hemisphere between May and October 2016, there were 700 million arrivals. In total, there have been seven consecutive years of sustained increase," he said. Mr. Valera also referred to the exponential growth of the different regions of the world and detailed the important upticks in Africa and Asia.

"China continues to rank first among all outbound markets. Its spending of $ 261 trillion represents a 12 percent increase in 2016. Since 2012, it’s been the top-ranking country in that indicator. The second place is for the United States with 122 million dollars. Germany, the United Kingdom and France close the top five on this list, "he said.

Meanwhile, the Americas held a 16 percent growth of the world total. In the Caribbean, the Dominican Republic and Cuba are by far the two leading nations.

The UNWTO official explained that in the Organization's priorities to guarantee safe and fluid travel for all, as well as great airlift and the willingness to have the private and public sectors work more closely together.

"By 2015, 23 percent of the world's countries had the right to travel without a visa. Today the figure rises to 40 percent and emerging economies are the most open on the issue of arrival permits. Europe is the continent with the greatest restrictions, but it is the one that registers the most tourists," he said.

Valera delved into the importance of technologies and said that they are an essential tool for tourists, "so it is very important to have them and use them to promote travel and meet the needs of travelers. Technology has changed the profile of travelers, now they are more independent and autonomous, and demand authentic experiences.

"UNWTO is working hard to develop sustainable tourism, which has created an international network of observatories. We promote an inclusive tourism, without discrimination, a tourism for all," he concluded.

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