The best tourist destinations 2019

2019 suffered a decline in arrivals, as the 2017 statistics had predicted. Analyzing the tourism trend in the different continents, Asia confirms itself as the predominant one in growth with China as the protagonist.

The already established Hong Kong is first in the world rankings with 31 million arrivals expected for 2020 and Singapore fourth with 21 million preceded by Bangkok, second, with 28 million.

The influence of the digital sector is crucial in the growth of these countries, which thanks to modern apps, such as, for example, the Chinese ‘WeChat’ and the use of smartphones, ‘mobile only’ commercial purchasing and selling processes are speeded up also in the tourism sector, among which we mainly find holiday and transport bookings.

Even the smart and preferred immediate payment systems via card circuit are confirmed to have 90% of use among the population of South Korea, 80% in Singapore and Hong Kong, as well as in the U.K. and the U.S.A. China, however, remains ‘backward’ with only 50% of usage and the remainder in ‘cash’, finally, at the bottom of the ranking, we find India with 90% of ‘cash transactions’.

Furthermore, while in Asia, since 2016, there has been a growth in landscape tourism of +8%, Europe has suffered, since 2018, an economic slowdown and a decrease in the number of visitors, due to the ‘Brexit effect’ , illegal immigration and terrorist attacks.

Only London, ranked third in the world, survives the international socio-economic and political fluctuations with 19 million arrivals per year and with a growth forecast for 2020 of +3% estimated at 22 million arrivals.

What lies ahead for America instead? With the new President Donald Trump, new tourism opportunities seem to be opening up, especially at a domestic level. It is necessary to consider the impacts and consequences over time, when, in the near future, they can be assessed with more certainty.