Compared to last year the study shows that tourist arrivals to Europe decreased by 68 percent.

In spite of summer expectations for the travel and tourism industry to mark a recovery by the end of the year, the second wave of the Coronavirus pandemic in Europe, and the travel restrictions that came with it have halted the recovery.

International tourist arrivals to Europe have dropped by 68 per cent halfway through the year, compared to the same period last year, shows a new report called “ European Tourism: Trends & Prospects ” for Q3 2020, published by the European Travel Commission’s (ETC) (ETC).

According to the report, the easing of pandemic restrictions across Europe has let to a hardly noticeable increase in July and August 2020 compared to earlier months. Yet, the reimposed of lockdowns and travel restrictions have quickly halted any chance of early recovery.

Looking at the months ahead, heightened uncertainty and downside risks continue to dampen the outlook with European arrivals set to decline 61 per cent in 2020.

According to the ETC Executive Director Eduardo Santander, it is now more important than ever for the European countries to agree on common solutions, which do prevent not only the further spread of the virus but also support the recovery of the tourism.

“ The direction of the economic recovery across Europe will depend significantly on the recovery of the tourism sector, a sector which generates close to 10 per cent of the EU’s GDP and accounts for over 22 million jobs ,” she said, highlighting the importance of protecting businesses, jobs, and enterprises in the travel and tourism industry, which are currently at risk.

Data collected and studied by the ETC shows that some of the deepest falls in the number of arrivals were marked in non-EU member states as Montenegro, Turkey, and Serbia, though more EU countries were listed in the top eight countries with the sharpest declines marked, as follows:

• Cyprus – 85 per cent
• Montenegro – 84 per cent
• Romania – 80 per cent
• Turkey – 77 per cent
• Portugal – 74 per cent
• Serbia – 74 per cent
• Iceland – 71 per cent
• Malta – 71 per cent

Austria is one of the countries that is in a good position to achieve a more secure recovery because of the country's less stringent constraints than in other countries. By September, the nation had decreased by 44 per cent, which is much lower than that of other countries.

According to the ETC article, it is obvious from the data that there is a more need for cooperation between EU Member States and other European countries, which currently have very different restrictions on each other.

In order to reduce downside risks across Europe, harmonized testing and tracing solutions along with quarantine steps would be critical," the report reads."

It also points out that the pandemic has also affected travel choices in European countries, particularly during the summer, as travelers have migrated to rural and coastal areas, avoiding urban areas.

A previous ETC study released in October reported that about 54% of Europeans are planning a trip to Europe within the next six months.

The survey found that sun & beach vacations (25 percent), city breaks (19 percent) and nature/outdoor trips were the most enticing types of trips for people who expect to travel soon (16 per cent).