Tag: WTTC

Virginia Messina, Senior Vice President WTTC, said: “WTTC is confident the EU Digital COVID Certificate will boost consumer confidence and the wider Travel & Tourism sector across Europe, which has been in a fight for survival for over a year. “The certificate is a great example and should aid the return of safe international travel; help recover jobs and signal the revival of a sector which will be critical to the economic recovery across the continent. “We’d like to commend the EU Commission and institutions for adopting this swiftly, however, EU Member States must take a coordinated and harmonized approach, ... Read more

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, and faculty and scientists of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, released four research insight papers to support the pursuit of sustainability in Travel & Tourism. The research insights aim to support decision-makers in Travel & Tourism to broaden their understanding of sustainability as it relates to policies and practice in the sector. WTTC and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health have a long history of collaboration, working towards a more sustainable future for Travel & Tourism. Together, they aim to ... Read more

The UK will lose a staggering £639 million a day during July if international travel remains off-limits, according to an open letter to the UK Prime Minister, from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The global tourism body, which represents the global private Travel & Tourism sector, has written to the UK Prime Minister, warning the UK faces a possible £19.8 billion loss if international travel is effectively delayed until August. Up to 218,000 more jobs in the sector are also at serious risk of being lost if no action is taken now – in addition to the 307,000 ... Read more

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), launch a major new report today, addressing the complex issue of single-use plastic products within Travel & Tourism. ‘Rethinking Single-Use Plastic Products in Travel & Tourism’ launches as countries around the world begins to reopen, and the Travel & Tourism sector starts to show signs of recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic which has been devastating. The report is a first step to mapping single-use plastic products across the Travel & Tourism value chain, identifying hotspots for environmental leakages, and providing practical and strategic recommendations for businesses ... Read more

A new campaign has been launched by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) calling on governments around the world to restart international travel and enable the world to ‘Reunite’ once again. After more than a year of lockdowns around the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the new campaign will showcase the importance international travel has on individuals and businesses. It will also encourage travelers to share with the world, the positive impact travel makes to their lives and mental well-being. Through its social media channels, ‘Reunite’ will urge people from all corners of the globe to share their ... Read more

The World Travel & Tourism Council’s annual Economic Impact Report (EIR) today reveals the full devastating impact of COVID-19 had on the global Travel & Tourism sector last year, which suffered a massive loss of almost US$4.5 trillion. The annual EIR from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, shows the sector’s contribution to GDP dropped a staggering 49.1%, this compared to the overall global economy which dropped by just 3.7% last year. Vast losses run up during 2020, paint the first full picture of a sector struggling to survive in ... Read more

“The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and its members praised the Greek government for its tremendous efforts and strategic steps taken to restart international travel from 14 May” said Gloria Guevara, President & CEO, WTTC. “This clear roadmap to recovery could reopen the door to a bumper summer of travel for sun-starved holidaymakers looking to get away to Greece and provide a significant boost to the country’s economy. “It also lays out the pathway which other countries could follow, in a bid to kickstart safe travel and help revive their own stricken economies. “The Greek government’s strategy and measures ... Read more

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, is set to present its new ‘Women Empowerment Initiative’ for travel at its annual Global Summit, which is taking place in April of this year, in Cancun, Mexico The WTTC ‘Women Empowerment Initiative’ will, through the creation of a Women´s Travel & Tourism Advisory Group and broad consultation across stakeholders, identify key activities and best practices to support women in universities, in SMEs, entrepreneurs, and in the corporate world across, the entire Travel & Tourism sector. The group will drive awareness of the current challenges ... Read more

World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) called on leadership from the EU to save the Travel & Tourism sector which has been left in ruin by the COVID-19 pandemic. “On behalf of WTTC and our 200 members, I would like to thank the Portuguese Presidency of the EU, Commissioner Breton and all European ministers for their alignment to do everything they can to prepare for the summer season. According to our recent data, 174 million jobs have been impacted globally due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In Europe alone, the most important region in the world, a staggering 23 million jobs ... Read more

The highly-anticipated World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) 20th Global Summit, will now take place in April – one month later than the originally planned date. The event will convene public and private sector leaders and provide the platform for the sector’s global recovery The Global Summit is being organised in partnership with the Government of Quintana Roo in Mexico and will be held in Cancun, Mexico on 25-27 April. WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, has taken the decision to move its Global Summit from March into April to coincide with the expected relaxation of ... Read more

“The Canadian government’s decision to suspend all flights to Mexico and the Caribbean until April 30, and impose hotel quarantines for all arriving passengers, will cause even further damage to its Travel & Tourism industry, which is already in a fight for survival due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Said Gloria Guevara, WTTC, President & CEO “Blanket flight cancellations and ineffective and costly quarantines are not the solution and will only slow down the recovery of this important sector. “These drastic measures will continue to cause untold damage to a sector that creates more than 1.6m jobs, and in 2019 contributed ... Read more

“WTTC is implacably opposed to quarantines as while protecting the public is paramount, there needs to be a balance struck between health and economic priorities,” said, Gloria Guevara, WTTC President & CEO “These latest government proposals, to impose a 10-day hotel quarantine on those UK inbound travellers originating from so-called ‘high-risk’ countries, will still cause enormous damage to the Travel & Tourism sector. “We firmly believe testing on departure and arrival for all travellers is the only way to halt the spread of the virus in its tracks, while still allowing negative testing passengers to travel in safety and restore ... Read more

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) says the introduction of new hotel quarantines by the UK government would force the complete collapse of Travel & Tourism as we know it. WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, fears the crippling impact of the new proposals being considered by the UK government would cause irreparable damage to a sector that contributes nearly £200 billion to the UK economy. The concern follows nine months of devastating travel restrictions, which has left scores of businesses crushed, millions of jobs lost or put at risk, and confidence to travel at ... Read more

More than 100 million jobs could return to the global Travel & Tourism sector during 2021, as the world recovers from the crippling COVID-19 pandemic, says the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). A strong summer of travel is expected as the sector begins its road to recovery from late March onwards, with many major travel companies reporting a significant rise in forwarding bookings. The sector’s revival is backed by WTTC’s latest economic forecast, which gives further hope for the year ahead to businesses and millions of people employed in the sector worldwide. Last year, during the height of the ... Read more

WTTC welcomes this major step by the UK government which opens the doors to travellers arriving into England with proof of a negative COVID-19 test, no matter what the type of test they take. “Giving equal validity to every COVID-19 test takes away the concern travellers may have that their test may not be accepted and thus face the prospect of being forced into an unnecessary quarantine,” said Gloria Guevara, WTTC President & CEO “It also means tests of every type will be more affordable and accessible for travellers seeking to enter the UK safely, with proof of a negative ... Read more