After two years of near paralysis amid the COVID-19 pandemic, 2022 marked the worldwide return of travel. According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the past 12 months have been all about recovery with international tourist arrivals nearly tripling between January and July of 2022 — up 172% compared to the same period for 2021.
Translation: The travel industry has recovered almost 60% of its prepandemic levels, according to the UNWTO.
And while 2022 was the year of recovery, 2023 is poised to be the year of reinvention. A separate report, this one from from Booking.com, predicts the coming 12 months will be a time of “creatively reimagining” travel amid all of the chaos the world is facing.