US tops travel, tourism market with record GDP contribution

By Tuba Ongun

The US lead global travel and tourism market with contributing a record $2.36 trillion to its GDP in 2023, according to a report released by a tourism body on Wednesday.

"Despite the slow return of spending from international travelers, the US keeps pole position, with almost double the economic contribution of its nearest rival," the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) said in its 2024 Economic Impact Trends Report.

Despite the late reopening of its borders, China posted an impressive 135.8% annual growth and was the world’s second most powerful market with the sector's GDP contribution of $1.3 trillion last year.

Germany and Japan followed with $487.6 billion and $297 billion economic contribution, respectively.

The United Kingdom placed the fifth place contributing $295.2 billion in 2023 and France, the world’s most popular destination retained its sixth position with a contribution of $264.7 billion.

Over the next decade, WTTC projected China will become the largest travel and tourism market with India moving up to fourth position.

Julia Simpson, the president and CEO of the WTTC, said: "As we look forward to a record-breaking 2024, it's clear that travel and tourism is not only back on track, but also set to achieve unprecedented growth."

The report highlighted that many key destinations will see a surge in international spending this year compared to pre-virus levels, with Saudi Arabia up 91.3% compared to 2019, Türkiye (up 38.2%), Kenya (up 33.3%), Colombia (up 29.1%) and Egypt (up 22.9%) leading the way.

Globally international visitor spending is set to grow by nearly 16% compared to 2019 to reach $1.9 trillion, it said.

Travel and tourism investment climbed 13% to reach more than $1 trillion in 2023, with a return to pre-pandemic levels expected by 2025.