Tourism Is Back: What the 2024 Numbers Tell Us

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1. 01Tourism Is Back

   Good afternoon, everyone. In 2020, international travel almost stopped. Planes were grounded and borders were closed. Today, I'd like to look at the latest numbers and ask: is tourism really back?

   大家午安。2020年，國際旅行幾乎完全停止。飛機停飛，邊境關閉。今天，我想看看最新的資料，並提出一個問題：旅遊業真的恢復了嗎？

   Source: UN Tourism, "International tourism recovers pre-pandemic levels in 2024" (January 2025)

2. 02The Big Picture

   According to UN Tourism, about one point four billion international tourists traveled in 2024. That's around ninety-nine percent of the level before the pandemic. In other words, global tourism has almost fully recovered.

   根據聯合國旅遊組織的資料，2024年約有14億人次國際遊客出行。這大約是疫情前水平的99%。換句話說，全球旅遊業幾乎已經完全恢復。

   Source: UN Tourism, World Tourism Barometer (January 2025)

3. 03Not Every Region Is the Same

   However, the recovery is uneven. Compared to 2019, the Middle East received thirty-two percent more international arrivals. The Americas were at ninety-seven percent, while Asia and the Pacific were still at eighty-seven percent.

   不過，恢復的情況並不均衡。與2019年相比，中東接待的國際遊客增加了32%。美洲恢復到了97%，而亞太地區仍然只有87%。

   Source: UN Tourism, World Tourism Barometer (January 2025)

4. 04Why the Middle East Grew

   Why did some places grow so fast? One likely reason is investment. Several countries in the Middle East have spent heavily on new hotels, airports, and attractions to become major destinations.

   為什麼有些地方增長得這麼快？一個可能的原因是投資。中東的幾個國家在新酒店、機場和景點上投入了大量資金，希望成為主要的旅遊目的地。

5. 05Why Asia Took Longer

   Asia and the Pacific took longer, partly because some big destinations reopened late. For example, Japan welcomed individual tourists again in October 2022, and China ended quarantine for international arrivals in January 2023. Travel habits take time to return.

   亞太地區恢復得比較慢，部分原因是一些大的目的地重新開放得比較晚。比如，日本在2022年10月重新接待個人遊客，中國在2023年1月取消了對入境旅客的隔離。旅行習慣需要時間才能恢復。

   Sources: Government of Japan, resumption of visa-free individual travel (October 11, 2022); National Health Commission of China, end of inbound quarantine (January 8, 2023)

6. 06What It Means for Travelers

   What does this mean for us as travelers? Popular places are busy again, and prices can be high. My advice is to book early, and consider places that are still recovering.

   這對我們這些旅行者來說意味著什麼？熱門地方又變得擁擠了，價格也可能很高。我的建議是儘早預訂，也可以考慮那些還在恢復中的地方。

7. 07What It Means for Destinations

   For destinations, the return of tourists brings back jobs and income. But it also brings back old problems, like crowded streets and pressure on local housing.

   對旅遊目的地來說，遊客的迴歸帶回了工作和收入。但它也帶回了老問題，比如街道擁擠，以及對當地住房的壓力。

8. 08Conclusion

   To sum up, tourism is almost back to where it was, but not in the same way everywhere. The challenge now is to grow in a way that works for both visitors and local people. Thank you.

   總之，旅遊業幾乎回到了原來的水平，但各地的情況並不一樣。現在的挑戰是，要以一種對遊客和當地人都有利的方式發展。謝謝大家。