Tag Archives: WTTC

Julia Simpson, president and CEO, WTTC, at its Global Summit highlighted that the pandemic rewrote the rule book on how we live and how we travel. She said that WTTC is announcing its latest Economic Impact Research which shows that over the next 10 years to 2032 Travel & Tourism is poised to have an average annual growth rate of 5.8%. “By the end of 2022 we will have recovered to $8.35 trillion,” she added.

As the Travel & Tourism sector begins to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, its contribution to the global economy could reach $8.6 trillion this year, according to a study by the World Travel and Tourism Council. Prior to the pandemic, the Travel & Tourism sector generated nearly $9.2 trillion to the global economy in 2019. However, in 2020, the pandemic killed the sector, causing a massive 49.1% drop, representing a loss of nearly $4.5 trillion. 

Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO, said: “WTTC supports the World Health Organization (WHO) position in calling for borders to remain open and safe travel to continue. Closing borders will not prevent the spread of new variants. The latest variant is increasingly being detected in countries around the world. The way to keep safe is to focus on the vaccination status of individual travellers rather than placing whole countries onto red lists”.

World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) research has shown that if the right measures are followed by governments across the world, travel and tourism jobs could surpass 2019 levels – up 20.1% year on year, to more than 349 million. Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO said, “Last year, 62 million travel & tourism jobs were lost globally, and our data shows a rise of a meagre 0.7% this year. If governments can start looking internationally and support travel & tourism with simplified rules to enable the safe return of travel, there is the opportunity to save jobs and boost economic wealth.”

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has launched a new report which reveals how destinations can grow responsibly, using the Destination Stewardship model. It lays out how destinations can balance the needs of visitors and residents, with the involvement of both the public and private sector based on the responsible use of shared or ‘common pool’ resources.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) is calling for governments to abandon the concept of ‘high-risk countries’ and instead focus on how individual ‘high-risk travellers’ are treated at borders. It urges governments around the world to redefine their whole approach to risk assessment, to revive international business and leisure travel.

According to WTTC, more than 100 million jobs could return to the global tourism sector during 2021, as the world recovers from the crippling pandemic. “We are looking forward to a strong summer of travel, thanks to a combination of mask wearing, the global vaccination roll-out and testing on departure,” says Gloria Guevara, President & CEO, WTTC.

More than nine out of 10 (92%) of consumers trust personal recommendations with regards to health and hygiene, according to a new WTTC report titled, ‘To recovery and beyond- the future of travel & tourism in the wake of COVID-19’.

WTTC reveals that 100 destinations are now using its ‘Safe Travels’ stamp, with the Philippines becoming the official 100th destination to receive it. The stamp was developed in order to help restore confidence in travellers and work to revive an ailing travel & tourism sector, is now also being used by many more major holiday destinations such as the Maldives, Bermuda, Namibia, Uganda and Montenegro.

Ras Al Khaimah (RAK) Tourism Development Authority has confirmed that RAK has become the first city in the world to be certified as a ‘Safe’ destination by Bureau Veritas, the global leader in testing, inspection and certification services, having completed the ‘Safeguard Assurance’ programme. It has also become the first emirate to receive World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC’s) Safe Travels Stamp. Through a strategic partnership with Bureau Veritas, the Authority has led the way in implementing stringent health, safety and hygiene measures across all Ras Al Khaimah hotels to mitigate any possible risk for employees and guests, and provide complete confidence in the destination. Through an ongoing series of independent audits of all its hotels in the Emirate, the partnership was designed to further validate the measures and processes already in place, and takes RAKTDA’s ‘Stay Safe’ Hotel Certification Program to the next level. In addition, the almost-50,000sqft Al Hamra International Exhibition & Conference Center is following the detailed protocols developed by Bureau Veritas’ global health, safety and hygiene specialists, and will become the first certified MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions & events) facility in the region. Adding to the global validation, Ras Al Khaimah is the first Emirate in the UAE to receive the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Safe Travels Stamp, the world’s first ever global safety and hygiene stamp for the travel and tourism industry, designed specifically to address COVID-19 and similar outbreaks. The protocols were developed in collaboration with WTTC members (including RAKTDA), leading industry associations and international organisations, and covers operational and staff preparedness, ensuring a safe experience, re-building trust and confidence and implementing enabling policies. It also follows the current guidelines of the …