page_title: Tourism
section_title: Trends since 2000
hierarchical_section_title: Tourism / Growth / Trends since 2000
caption_attribution_description: This is a photo of a monument in Armenia identified by the ID 6.24/29
context_page_description: Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity only", as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure and not less than 24 hours, business and other purposes".
  Tourism can be domestic or international, and international tourism has both incoming and outgoing implications on a country's balance of payments.
  Tourism numbers declined as a result of a strong economic slowdown between the second half of 2008 and the end of 2009, and in consequence of the outbreak of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, but slowly recovered. Globally, international tourism receipts grew to US$1.03 trillion in 2005, corresponding to an increase in real terms of 3.8% from 2010.
context_section_description: As a result of the late-2000s recession, international arrivals experienced a strong slowdown beginning in June 2008. Growth from 2007 to 2008 was only 3.7% during the first eight months of 2008. This slowdown on international tourism demand was also reflected in the air transport industry, with negative growth in September 2008 and a 3.3% growth in passenger traffic through September. The hotel industry also reported a slowdown, with room occupancy declining. In 2009 worldwide tourism arrivals decreased by 3.8%. By the first quarter of 2009, real travel demand in the United States had fallen 6% over six quarters. While this is considerably milder than what occurred after the 9/11 attacks, the decline was at twice the rate, as real GDP has fallen.
  In 2020 COVID-19 pandemic lock-downs, travel bans and a substantial reduction in passenger travel by air and sea contributed to a  sharp decline in tourism activity.
  However, evidence suggests that tourism as a global phenomenon shows no signs of substantially abating in the long term. It has been suggested that travel is necessary in order to maintain relationships, as social life is increasingly networked and conducted at a distance. Many people increasingly view vacations and travel as a necessity rather than a luxury, and this is reflected in tourist numbers recovering some 6.6% globally over 2009, with growth up to 8% in emerging economies.
caption: Cultural tourism: tourists outside a Geghard monastery in Armenia, 2015
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