Asia is the second most visited vacation spot outdoors Europe for EU residents
Europe — and fairly often a vacationer’s personal nation of residence — remained essentially the most enticing vacation spot for many journeys made by Europeans. It accounted for 86.0 % of the entire variety of journeys made in 2016 (see Determine 1). The highest continent visited outdoors Europe was America with 5.7 % of complete journeys, adopted by Asia with 4.9 %.
Supply: Eurostat (tour_dem_ttw)
Determine 2 takes a better have a look at journeys made outdoors the EU. Journeys to different locations in Europe — comparable to Turkey, Switzerland, Norway, Russia and all different non-EU European nations — made up the most important share (38 %). Nonetheless Asia accounted for multiple in 5 journeys outdoors the EU (22 %). When measured by way of nights spent and expenditure, Asia’s share of all non-EU tourism will increase to 29 % and 28 % respectively. EU residents made 15.2 million journeys to Asia — representing a complete of 263.5 million nights — and spent EUR 25.5 billion on these journeys. Part of the EUR 25.5 billion spent stayed inside the EU financial system, for example for intercontinental flights operated by European airways or fee charges charged by European journey businesses.
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/6/6c/Trips%2C_nights_spent_and_expenditure_of_EU_residents_outside_EU-28%2C_by_destination%2C_EU-28%2C_2016.png/500px-Trips%2C_nights_spent_and_expenditure_of_EU_residents_outside_EU-28%2C_by_destination%2C_EU-28%2C_2016.png)
China is the 8th hottest non-EU vacation spot for EU residents
China is changing into a well-liked journey vacation spot for Europeans. In 2016, China ranked quantity 8 amongst non-EU locations (see Determine 3 and Desk 1). The US was the most well-liked non-EU vacation spot, adopted by nations neighbouring the EU (Turkey, Switzerland, Norway and Russia).
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/f/fc/Top-10_non-EU_destinations_for_tourism_trips_of_EU_residents%2C_EU-28%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png/500px-Top-10_non-EU_destinations_for_tourism_trips_of_EU_residents%2C_EU-28%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (tour_dem_ttw)
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/1/15/Top_10_non-EU_destinations_for_trips_of_EU_residents%2C_EU-28%2C_2016.png/500px-Top_10_non-EU_destinations_for_trips_of_EU_residents%2C_EU-28%2C_2016.png)
Two Asian nations — Thailand and the United Arab Emirates (every of them representing simply above 3.0% of EU residents’ journeys to non-EU locations) — had been nonetheless barely forward of China (3.0 %) in 2016. EU residents made 2.1 million journeys to China in 2016, and stayed on common 15.6 nights. Complete spending on journeys with China as foremost vacation spot was EUR 5.1 billion (China climbed to 3rd place in expenditure phrases — see Desk 1).
Within the 5 yr interval 2012—2016, the variety of journeys by EU residents to China elevated by 16 % (information primarily based on 20 nations, which account for 76 % of the journeys made by EU residents).
Tourism from China to the EU has tripled in ten years
The variety of nights spent within the EU by vacationers from China has greater than tripled over the past ten years, reaching almost 25 million nights in 2016. Tourism from China has risen greater than that from different main non-EU nations comparable to the US, Russia or Brazil (see Determine 4).
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/4/4e/Growth_of_tourism_nights_spent_in_EU_tourist_accommodation%2C_2016_compared_with_2006_Selected_origin_countries_%28%25%29.png/500px-Growth_of_tourism_nights_spent_in_EU_tourist_accommodation%2C_2016_compared_with_2006_Selected_origin_countries_%28%25%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (tour_occ_ninraw)
Determine 5 reveals that the overwhelming majority of foreigners staying in vacationer lodging institutions in EU nations got here from different EU nations (72 %) or different European nations (9 %). Of non- European vacationers, these from Asia accounted for the largest share of nights spent (8 %).
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/e/e2/Nights_spent_by_non-residents_in_tourist_accommodation_establishments_by_world_region_of_the_guest%2C_EU-28%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png/500px-Nights_spent_by_non-residents_in_tourist_accommodation_establishments_by_world_region_of_the_guest%2C_EU-28%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (tour_occ_ninraw)
1.7 % of all nights spent in EU-28 nations by non-residents was by vacationers from China; for Finland the share was almost 5 % (see Determine 6).
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/a/a1/Nights_spent_by_Chinese_tourists_of_the_total_nights_spent_by_non-residents%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png/500px-Nights_spent_by_Chinese_tourists_of_the_total_nights_spent_by_non-residents%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (tour_occ_ninraw)
The share of Chinese language vacationers out of the entire nights spent by vacationers coming from outdoors the EU was nearly 6 % (see Determine 7). Luxembourg was extremely popular amongst Chinese language vacationers; 1 in 8 nights spent by non-EU vacationers in Luxembourg, was spent by a Chinese language vacationer.
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/e/ea/Nights_spent_by_Chinese_tourists_of_the_total_nights_spent_by_guests_from_outside_the_EU%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png/500px-Nights_spent_by_Chinese_tourists_of_the_total_nights_spent_by_guests_from_outside_the_EU%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (tour_occ_ninraw)
Vacationers from China primarily stayed in simply 4 EU nations: greater than 7 out of 10 in a single day stays by vacationers from China to the EU had been in the UK (31 %), Italy (18 %), France (13 %) and Germany (10 %) (see Determine 8).
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/f/f4/Tourism_nights_spent_by_residents_of_China_in_EU-28%2C_2016_%28%25%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (tour_occ_ninraw)
The EU is a web exporter of journey companies to China
In 2016, the EU exported journey companies valued at almost EUR 7 billion [1]. In the identical yr, the EU imported almost EUR 3 billion from China (i.e. Europeans’ spending on journeys in China). Europe was a web exporter of journey companies with a constructive steadiness of EUR 4 billion.
Till 2008 (see Determine 9) the journey merchandise confirmed a detrimental steadiness within the EU’s steadiness of funds with China, with debits exceeding credit.
![](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/images/thumb/0/0d/EU-28_balance_of_payments_with_China%2C_travel_item%2C_2004-2016_%28mio_euro%29.png/500px-EU-28_balance_of_payments_with_China%2C_travel_item%2C_2004-2016_%28mio_euro%29.png)
Supply: Eurostat (bop_eu6_q)
The expansion charges of the financial flows (credit and debits) had been in keeping with the underlying bodily flows of Chinese language vacationers staying in European lodging and EU vacationers making journeys to China respectively (see above).
Supply information for tables and graphs
Information sources
This text is an evaluation of harmonised information collected by the Member States within the body of the Regulation (EU) No 692/2011 of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding European statistics on tourism.
Tourism, in a statistical context, refers back to the exercise of holiday makers taking a visit to a vacation spot outdoors their ordinary setting, for lower than a yr. It may be for any foremost function, together with enterprise, leisure or different private causes apart from to be employed by a resident individual, family or enterprise within the place visited.
Tourism statistics within the EU include two foremost parts: on the one hand, statistics referring to capability and occupancy of collective vacationer lodging; on the opposite, statistics referring to tourism demand. In most EU Member States, the previous are collected through surveys crammed in by lodging institutions, whereas the latter are primarily collected through traveller surveys at border crossings or by way of family surveys.
Context
EU-China Tourism 12 months (ECTY) was launched in Venice on 19 January 2018. This initiative, agreed on the 2017 EU China Summit, goals at supporting the event of latest and higher journey itineraries, selling inter-cultural understanding, and enhancing journey and tourism experiences, together with larger promotion and extra sustainable tourism.
Based on a United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) publication titled ‘Tourism highlights’, the EU is a serious vacationer vacation spot, with 5 of its Member States among the many world’s prime 10 locations in 2016. Based on this publication, China continues to consolidate its place because the world’s largest journey market by way of each outbound journey and expenditure.
Tourism has the potential to contribute in direction of employment and financial progress, in addition to to growth in rural, peripheral or less-developed areas. These traits drive the demand for dependable and harmonised statistics inside this discipline, in addition to inside the wider context of regional coverage and sustainable growth coverage areas.
Tourism can play a big position within the growth of European areas. Infrastructure created for tourism functions contributes to native growth, whereas jobs which can be created or maintained might help counteract industrial or rural decline. Sustainable tourism includes the preservation and enhancement of cultural and pure heritage, starting from the humanities to native gastronomy or the preservation of biodiversity.