Global tourism is set to end 2023 with a bang.

International tourism is on track to recover to almost 90% of pre-pandemic levels by the end of this year, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) said.

According to the latest data from the UNWTO, an estimated 975 million tourists travelled internationally between January and September 2023, an increase of 38% on the same months in 2022.

The newest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer also shows:

World destinations welcomed 22% more international tourists in the third quarter of 2023 compared with the same period last year, reflecting a strong Northern hemisphere summer season.

International tourist arrivals hit 91% of pre-pandemic levels in the third quarter, reaching 92% in July, the best month so far since the start of pandemic.

Overall, tourism recovered to 87% of pre-pandemic levels in January-September 2023. That puts the sector on course to recover almost 90% by the end of the year.

International tourism receipts could reach US$1.4 trillion in 2023, about 93% of the US$1.5 trillion earned by destinations in 2019.

UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “The latest UNWTO data shows that international tourism has almost completely recovered from the unprecedented crisis of COVID-19, with many destinations reaching or even exceeding pre-pandemic arrivals and receipts. This is critical for destinations, businesses, and communities where the sector is a major lifeline.”

The Middle East, Europe, and Africa lead recovery

The Middle East continues to lead the recovery by regions in relative terms, with arrivals 20% above pre-pandemic levels in the nine months through September 2023. The Middle East remains the only world region to surpass 2019 levels in this period. Visa facilitation measures, the development of new destinations, investments in new tourism-related projects and the hosting of large events, help underpin this remarkable performance.

Europe, the world’s largest destination region, welcomed 550 million international tourists over the period, 56% of the global total. That represents 94% of pre-pandemic levels. The rebound was supported by robust intra-regional demand as well as strong demand from the US.

Africa recovered 92% of pre-pandemic visitors in this nine-month period, and arrivals in the Americas reached 88% of 2019 numbers over this period, as the region benefited from strong US demand to Caribbean destinations.

Asia and the Pacific reached 62% of pre-pandemic levels over this period due to slower reopening to international travel. However, performance among subregions is mixed, with South Asia recovering 95% of pre-pandemic levels but North-East Asia only about 50%.

Tourism spending is strong.

Strong demand for outbound travel was reported by several large source markets in this period, with many exceeding 2019 levels. Germany and the US spent 13% and 11% more respectively on outbound travel than in the same nine months of 2019, while Italy spent 16% more through August.

The sustained recovery is also reflected in the performance of industry indicators. Drawing on data from IATA, the UNWTO Tourism Recovery Tracker details a strong recovery in air passenger numbers and tourist accommodation occupancy levels.

Against this backdrop, international tourism is well on track to fully recover pre-pandemic levels in 2024 despite economic challenges such as high inflation and weaker global output, as well as important geopolitical tensions and conflicts.

Source: Tourism update

Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Morocco ranked Africa’s top tourism performers 2023.

The end of a civil war in Ethiopia, Tanzania’s president featuring in a historical tourism documentary and rising infrastructure and marketing investments in Morocco have bolstered the three countries’ tourism rankings on the continent, according to a new report.

The three countries were ranked as Africa’s top tourism performers in 2023 after exceeding their pre-pandemic arrival numbers by the highest margins.

“Africa recovered 92% of pre-crisis arrivals (in) this seven-month period, with Ethiopia, Tanzania and Morocco by far exceeding their respective pre-pandemic levels in January-July 2023,” according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Barometer.

The Barometer ranked Ethiopia as the top African Tourism performer, having exceeded its pre-pandemic visitor numbers by 28% a year after ending its civil war in the Tigray region, following a peace deal.

In June Ethiopia’s Tourism ministry announced that more than 770,000 tourists visited Ethiopia nine months after a peace agreement was signed in Pretoria to end the two-year war in the northern part of the country.

“The number of international and national tourist inflows has been increasing every quarter in this year on completion of major tourism attraction projects and work to promote Ethiopian tourism destinations worldwide,” said Ethiopia’s Minister of Tourism, Ambassador Nasise Chali.

The Ethiopian National Museum has been listed by the ministry as among the places that have experienced a high tourist flow which was also bolstered by domestic tourists. More than 8.9 million citizens have visited tourist attractions in the quarter of the year, according to the ministry.

In yet another indicator of Ethiopia’s rise to the top of the African tourism league, Ethiopian Airlines made a triumphant return to the top of the African aviation scene in October.

The largest airline in Africa reclaimed the prestigious title of ‘Africa’s Leading Airline’ at the 2023 World Travel Awards for Africa and the Indian Ocean regions at an event held in Dubai.

Ethiopian Airlines held the title for three consecutive years from 2018 before losing it to Kenya Airways in 2021.

Tanzania came second in the rankings after surpassing pre-pandemic arrival numbers by 19% on the back of increased tourism investments, including a government-produced documentary – ‘The Royal Tour’ – featuring President Samia Suluhu.

Tanzania’s National Bureau of Statistics affirmed the rise in arrival numbers with data for the period between January and August showing international visitor numbers increased by 25.7% to 1,131,286 compared to a similar period in 2022.

During the eight-month period, the majority of arrivals came from the United States of America with 84,541 visitors, followed by France (72,009), Germany (57,798), United Kingdom (51,505) and Italy (51,056).

The majority of African arrivals came from Kenya with 128,753, followed by Burundi (69,505), Zambia (38,394), Rwanda (37,269) and Uganda (28,594).

Tanzania’s role in tourism growth was recognized this October by UNWTO when the country was made a member of the organization’s council responsible for developing global tourism strategies and plans, as well as the UNWTO’s vice-chair.

Morocco was ranked third best performer, exceeding its pre-pandemic arrival numbers by 15% over the review period.

According to the tourism observatory, Morocco’s tourism sector saw a 92% increase in tourist arrivals during the first half of 2023, surpassing figures from the previous year.

Approximately 6.5 million tourists visited the country, with France and Spain leading the way with 75% and 180% increases respectively. The UK, Italy, and the US also contributed significantly to the surge.

In early March, the Moroccan Government announced plans to spend US$580 million until 2026 on marketing, developing new tourist attractions, upgrading existing hotels, building new ones, and training more people to work in the tourism sector.

The country aims to attract 17.5 million tourists by 2026, which is an increase from 11 million last year and more than 13 million visitors the country had before the pandemic.

The higher performance of these three countries made Africa among the world’s fastest recovering tourism markets, with UNWTO Barometer data recording its recovery to pre-crisis visitor levels as higher than the Americas (87%), or Asia and the Pacific (61%).

The Middle East led the recovery by region, with levels currently 20% above pre-pandemic levels, followed by Europe, which reached 94% of pre-pandemic levels.

“International tourism is well on track to fully recover pre-pandemic levels in 2024 despite economic challenges and uncertainty derived from certain geopolitical tensions and conflicts,” according to the UNWTO tourism Barometer.

According to the UNWTO Tourism Recovery Tracker, international air capacity and passenger demand have recovered to about 84% of pre-pandemic levels as of June 2023.

Additionally, hotel bookings have doubled in the period of January to August 2023 compared to the same period last year. In August 2023, global occupancy rates in accommodation establishments reached 70%, slightly higher than the 66% rate in August 2022.

Source: Independent

UNWTO and AFCAC collaborate on air connectivity in Africa.

Towards improving connectivity and advancing seamless travel in Africa, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has strengthened its partnership with the African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC).

The new Memorandum of Understanding signed between UNWTO and AFCAC reflects the importance of boosting cooperation between tourism and aviation to create jobs and drive inclusive growth in Africa.

This agreement is based around shared initiatives, including the promotion of sustainable tourism and the implementation of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM).

UNWTO has actively participated in AFCAC’s recent events, particularly the SAATM Pilot Implementation Project aiming to accelerate Africa’s interconnectivity by 2025.

Acknowledging the significance of travel facilitation, UNWTO has also commended countries, including Benin, The Gambia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Seychelles, for offering free visas to African tourists, aligning with the shared vision of increased connectivity.

Source: Guardian

Kenya Airways Returns to Bangkok for 1st Time Since COVID

Kenya Airways (KQ) announced that it has resumed scheduled passenger flights between Nairobi and Bangkok, expanding its international network to connect Kenya with more cities worldwide. This is the first time the national airline has operated regular flights to the Thai capital since the dawn of the COVID-19 pandemic. Separately, Kenya Airways will relaunch non-stop flights to Mogadishu, Somalia, which was also suspended during the pandemic.

Kenya Airways returns to Bangkok.

Flights between Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO) and Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) returned on November 21, 2023. KQ launched flights to Bangkok in September 2003, serving the Thai city for nearly 17 years until flights were suspended in 2020.

The route is served five times a week on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays and is tagged to Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport (CAN). After departing Nairobi, flight KQ886 flies to Bangkok and on to Guangzhou before returning to Nairobi via Bangkok. Flights are operated with Kenya Airways’ Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, which offers 204 economy and 30 business (Premier World) class seats.

This resumption expands the SkyTeam member’s network to over 40 international destinations, including nine intercontinental routes between Africa and Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America. Speaking about the inaugural flight to Bangkok and the airline’s international expansion plans, Kenya Airways Chief Commercial Officer Julius Thairu said,

“Today marks a moment of pride and readiness as we reintroduce our flights to Bangkok, Thailand. This initiative underscores our proactive approach in expanding international routes, urging our passengers to embrace new and enriching travel experiences. Beyond its status as Thailand’s capital and most populous city, boasting a population of over 10 million, Bangkok is a vibrant hub offering a wide range of tourist, art, and cultural attractions for our esteemed customers.”

While Kenya Airways celebrated its November 21 flight as an inaugural service after three years, data from Flightradar24 shows some Nairobi-Bangkok-Guangzhou flights were operated by the airline until February 14, 2023. It is unclear if these were normal scheduled operations or something else.

Source: Simple Flying

Dubai’s Burj Al Arab hosts 2023 World Travel Awards winners

The World Travel Awards (WTA) Grand Final Gala Ceremony 2023 revealed the crème de la crème of travel brands. At Dubai’s iconic Burj Al Arab, tourism luminaries gathered to discover the champions among them, marking the culmination of WTA’s illustrious 30th-anniversary celebration of travel excellence.

The Maldives shone brightly, earning the prestigious title of ‘World’s Leading Destination,’ while the Maldives Marketing & Public Relations Corporation (MMPRC) secured the accolade for the ‘World’s Leading Tourist Board.’

The Philippines’ pristine beaches and reefs earned recognition as the ‘World’s Leading Dive Destination’ and ‘World’s Leading Beach Destination.’ Madeira’s untamed beauty captured voters’ hearts, securing the title of ‘World’s Leading Island Destination.’ Cannes, with its timeless charm and top-notch facilities, claimed the distinction of being the ‘World’s Leading Festival & Event Destination.’

The Caribbean displayed its allure, with Saint Lucia winning ‘World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination,’ and Jamaica reinforcing its tourism prowess by clinching ‘World’s Leading Family Destination’ and ‘World’s Leading Cruise Destination.’

Qatar’s vibrant tourism sector garnered multiple awards, with Doha, post the success of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, named ‘World’s Leading Sports Tourism Destination’ and ‘World’s Leading Business Travel Destination.’ Qatar Tourism received recognition for the ‘World’s Leading Marketing Campaign.’

In the newcomer categories, Atlantis The Royal in Dubai lived up to expectations as the ‘World’s Leading New Resort,’ while Raffles Doha, a new architectural gem in Qatar, was crowned ‘World’s Leading New Hotel.’ Saudi Arabia’s burgeoning tourism economy was acknowledged with Red Sea International Airport claiming the title of ‘World’s Leading New Airport.’

The ceremony found its perfect venue at the Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, an icon of Arabian luxury that has played a pivotal role in elevating Dubai on the global luxury tourism map.

Graham Cooke, Founder of WTA, expressed his gratitude, saying, “Hosting our 30th-anniversary celebrations at Burj Al Arab Jumeirah, Dubai, has been a privilege. Our world winners epitomize tourism excellence, and I congratulate each one for contributing to raising the collective benchmark even higher.”

Arabian aviation’s strength was evident in the awards, with Qatar Airways sweeping ‘World’s Leading Airline’ and ‘World’s Leading Airline – Business Class,’ Etihad Airways claiming ‘World’s Leading Airline – Economy Class’ and ‘World’s Leading Airline – Customer Experience,’ and Emirates securing ‘World’s Leading Airline – First Class.’

The opulent Jumeirah Al Naseem in the UAE was crowned ‘World’s Leading Hotel,’ while Sardinia’s Forte Village Resort earned the distinction of ‘World’s Leading Resort.’

Source: Travel  and Tour World

Ethiopian Airlines Reveals Its European Expansion Plans

Ethiopian Airlines will serve 19 European airports with passenger flights this year, based on Cirium data. It comes as it introduced Copenhagen in May, London Gatwick in November (I was on it), and Madrid returns in December. But where might be coming? I met the carrier’s Chief Commercial Officer, Lemma Yadecha Gudeta, at Gatwick.

Future European plans

Airline personnel are usually understandably apprehensive about publicly disclosing much, if anything, about future for competition reasons. Not so Gudeta. Of course, there were no further details, including timeframes, but it was nonetheless insightful.

Lisbon: “a done deal,” subject to slots there. Previously, I showed that multiple carriers have applied for slots at the Portuguese capital for next summer, an airport renowned for a lack of them. It is a Star Alliance hub and Ethiopian is a Star member

Dublin: “a done case.” Ethiopian stopped serving the Irish capital on a standalone passenger basis (i.e., not continuing to North America) in March 2020, when it operated via Brussels

Amsterdam: also coming, subject to slots, inevitably helped by Schiphol going back on its plan to reduce and limit flights next summer for noise reasons. Ethiopian last served the city in 2007 when it flew via Frankfurt.

Northern UK: supplementing Manchester in the north (which it serves five weekly via Geneva) and London Heathrow and Gatwick down south; more on this below.

Warsaw: for Star Alliance reasons

Another airport in the northern UK

As Gudeta, who became CCO in 2022, said, “We can expand in the UK because we have so many available weekly flights available under the existing bilateral agreement [air service agreement or ASA].” He is shown in the photo below.

ASAs still underpin many areas of world aviation and limit how much an airline can fly to another country. Ethiopian can operate up to 28 weekly flights to the UK, of which it now has 15: daily to Heathrow, five weekly to Manchester, and three weekly to Gatwick.

In this context, “Northern UK” can realistically only mean Glasgow or Edinburgh. Analysis of booking data for the 12 months to September 2023 shows that both Scottish cities, 75 minutes or so apart, had about 116,000 roundtrip passengers to sub-Saharan Africa. That equates to ~317 passengers daily, excluding seasonality.

In all, Johannesburg, Cape Town, Nairobi, and Lagos (Ethiopian’s largest transfer market from Heathrow and Manchester) were among the pair’s largest markets. In keeping with many other European routes, Glasgow or Edinburgh would inevitably fly via the European mainland until traffic builds up enough to warrant de-tagging.

Source: Simple Flying

Dubai launches reef project to boost marine life, eco-tourism, and fishermen’s livelihoods.

Dubai has launched a coral reef project for marine restoration that will increase sea life eight-fold, improve the sustainability of fishermen’s livelihoods, and attract eco-tourism.

The Dubai Reef project, which was announced at Cop28 on Friday, will span 600 square kilometers of the emirate’s waters, with the design of the coral reefs exceeding 400,000 cubic metres in total volume, Helal Al Marri, director-general of the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, said during a session at the Business and Philanthropy Climate Forum.

The project will operate on a public-private partnership model where the government has contributed 10 per cent of the investment and has secured commitments for more than 50 per cent of the funding, Mr. Al Marri said.

“We worked with the best minds to look at coral reef restoration and how to rebuild the coral environment and ensure it makes a difference,” he said.

“What we would hope is that this successful model makes it very bankable for other communities around the world.”

The project is part of Dubai’s efforts to increase fish stocks, support sustainable fishing and help boost food security, according to a statement by the Dubai Media Office on Friday.

Dubai Reef will also help to reduce carbon emissions and increase marine biodiversity. The reefs have an estimated capacity to capture more than seven million tonnes of carbon annually.

The project is also aligned with the UAE’s goals to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.

The Dubai Reef project will be led by the Department of Economy and Tourism and founding partner the Regulatory Committee on Fishing of Living Aquatic Resources in Dubai, in co-operation with Dubai Chambers, the Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation and Nakheel.

“The project will contribute to achieving food security and supporting the sustainability of the fishing industry in Dubai,” Major General Ahmed Mohammed bin Thani, chairman of the Regulatory Committee on Fishing of Living Aquatic Resources in Dubai, said.

“It will also contribute to facilitating fishing operations by providing an environment that attracts fish and marine life, thus reducing the operational costs associated with commercial fishing. The project will also contribute to increasing the quantities and abundance of commercial fish.”

The project is set to unfold in four phases starting in 2024, according to the Dubai Media Office statement.

It will begin in the first quarter and is scheduled for completion within four years, it said.

The project will help create jobs, increase the appeal of recreational water activities, and foster sustainable food sources, it said.

Source: The National News

Kenya Airways Set to Re-introduce Weekly Flights to Mogadishu

The resumption follows the temporary suspension in August 2020 to mitigate the spread of the Corona virus. The phased flight resumption will resume with 3 weekly flights in the month of February 2024.

Speaking ahead of the resumption, Julius Thairu, Chief Commercial and Customer Officer at Kenya Airways, said, “We are eager about the potential of re-establishing the link between Mogadishu and Nairobi through KQ. This move aligns with the increasing business and the growing number of air travel between Kenya and Somalia. Kenya Airways is committed to providing high-quality service for our customers, as we work together to foster trade and investment for sustained growth.”

The resumption of Mogadishu flights is part of Kenya Airways network expansion strategy and commitment aimed at enhancing connectivity across the African continent to contribute to long-term economic progress.

Source: Corporate Kenya-Airways

CORPORATE TRAVEL IS BACK IN BUSINESS. BUT WHAT’S CHANGED?

Since the pandemic ended, there’s been lots of speculation about the future of traveling for work. But in 2022,according to GBTA, global business travel expenditure increased by 47%, topping over one trillion US dollars. And that growth shows no signs of stopping. Spending is predicted to recover to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024 — faster than the previously projected mid-2026 forecast.

Why? First and foremost, because business travel is a logistical necessity for many people, like sales reps, client service managers, consultants, conferences and events staff, construction workers, circus folk etc. For these folks, being on the road is part and parcel of their role, and it’s budgeted for even more in the most uncertain of economic climates. Because nothing beats being face-to-face time with customers. And the others? They travel because their organizations want them to, remaining steadfast in the belief that meeting in person drives performance and growth. What might surprise you is to hear that almost nine out of ten (87%) of business travelers agree with them.

87% of employees think business travel is important to company growth.

Source: Uber and GBTA report

Nonetheless, many companies are still struggling to get employees moving, and that’s because many are still working from home. In fact, by 2025 it’s projected that 32.6 million US employees will be remote workers. Since that changes the very nature of what ‘work’ looks like, there are also knock-on consequences for business travel, too.

Balancing what everyone wants and needs is a delicate act, and many companies are turning to TMCs to help them do it. So here are six key things you need to know in 2024.

Source: Travelport

Closed markets, high costs hurting Africa airlines more.

A rare tongue-lashing to Nigeria over its ballooning debt to airlines and high operating costs almost overshadowed the opening session of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) 55th AGM that was hosted by Uganda Airlines in Kampala this week.

But industry leaders soon got back to business exploring the opportunities of a growing market and mulling the obstacles that need to be removed before African air transport achieves its full potential.

African airlines continued their post-pandemic recovery carrying 67 million passengers during 2022, but still face near term threats of high operating costs, a slow pace of market liberalization, disproportionate taxes, blocked funds and, the transition to NetZero carbon operations that kick in starting 2025.

In his state-of-the industry report to 600 delegates at the AGM, AFRAA secretary-general Abderahmane Berthe, said African carriers were projected to carry 85 million passengers this calendar year.

Losses per passenger are also shrinking further from $9.5 last year to $4.4 this year.

In his state-of-the industry report to 600 delegates at the AGM, AFRAA secretary-general Abderahmane Berthe, said African carriers were projected to carry 85 million passengers this calendar year.

Losses per passenger are also shrinking further from $9.5 last year to $4.4 this year.

Quoting the World Bank, Mr Berthe also said Africa registered 3.8 percent in GDP growth last year, against a world average of 3.1 percent. Projections for 2023 point to a marginal increase to 4 percent while global growth will slip 1 percent to 2.1 percent.

Jet fuel prices, which are 30-40 percent higher in Africa, surging inflation, which closed 2022 at 15.1 percent, a rising toll of blocked funds and slow pace of the Single African Air Transport Market (SAATM) remain a source of worry for airline executives.

“We would love to be in a position where we switch it off and switch it on tomorrow, but we have to be honest with ourselves and realize that this needs a lot of work,” IATA’s vice-president for Africa and the Middle East, Kamil Al Awadhi told the meeting.

Thirty-seven countries have so far signed up to the SAATM, whose implementation is yet to gain traction. Only 23 have ratified the treaty and even fewer are participating in implementation.

Aaron Munetsi, secretary-general of the Airline Association of Southern Africa, used the parallel of East Africa’s One Network Area to illustrate the potential impact of liberalization of air transport for airlines and consumers alike. Indeed, telephone traffic between Kenya and Rwanda increased 900 times in a single year, after the two countries unified calling rates in 2010.

Environmental footprint

While airlines are losing patience, Gen Edward Katumba Wamala, Uganda’s minister for Works and Transport, said although Kampala had initiated internal processes to sign up to the SAATM, it was neither a magic wand “nor an event,” but a process that required alignment across different segments.

Another headache is the energy transition, which will see all airlines flying into the European Union required to fly on two percent blend of Sustainable Aviation Fuel starting 2025. The ratio will progressively increase to six percent in 2030, 20 percent by 2035 and 34 percent by 2040 before peaking at 7 percent in 2050.

While the timelines appear to be evenly spread out, executives at Ethiopian Airlines and Kenya Airways, both which have piloted SAF flights, say that without mitigation measures and governments stepping in to develop a clear roadmap for domestication of SAF production, meeting the EU mandate will be a tall order.

Kenya Airways CEO Allan Kilavuka said the status quo was unfair to Africa because the volume of flights by African airlines was still low and their contribution to emissions minimal.

“In Europe they need to fly less but in Africa we need to fly more,” said Mr. Kilavuka, highlighting both the connectivity gap on the continent and its subsequent smaller environmental footprint.

SAF is also scarce and expensive, costing 4-5 times the price of conventional jet fuel. That means African airlines will burn more cash just to meet the EU mandate.

Globally, only 125 million litres of SAF were produced last year. Demand for SAF is projected at 450 billion litres annually by 2050.

Mr. Kilavuka said that African governments need to move fast to make investment in SAF production attractive to private investors if the fuel is to be available to airlines at reasonable cost.

AFRAA says it has developed a plan for the transition to NetZero and in due course, AU members will take definitive steps to domesticate SAF production.

Holding the biggest stash of blocked funds by any country, Nigeria got a rare tongue-lashing from Al Awadhi. Africa accounts for $1.68 billion of the $2.35 billion in airline funds, blocked by funds globally. At $850 million, Nigeria accounts for one-third of the global bill. More than a third of Nigeria’s blocked funds bill is owed to a single airline whose bill has reached $290 million.

“Nigeria, which is the strongest economy in Africa, is the 10th largest oil exporter in the world, also is the number one debtor to airlines and charges the highest fees to airlines on the continent. How is SAATM going to work when a country is allowed to that? This has to stop,” Al Awadhi said.

With a passenger service charge of $100, Abuja and Lagos’ Murtala Muhamed International Airports are the most expensive to fly to in Africa.

“Investors want to invest in de-risked industries, we need to invest in de-risking SAF in Africa,” he said.

Source: The East African