World Tourism Day: Why Is It Observed on September 27?

Caribbean News…
24 September 2021 7:00pm
World Tourism Day

Caribbean News Digital Newsroom

World Tourism Day is one of the most important dates for tourism stakeholders around the globe. All entities, both global and regional, celebrate this day. 

It is celebrated every September 27 and its purpose is to recognize the importance of tourism for the economic and social growth of every country. This day seeks to encourage more people to travel and discover incredible tourist attractions in the company of friends and family.

The Covid-19 pandemic, which has wreaked so much havoc on the leisure industry, now becomes a propitious moment to call for openness, to restart the sector without neglecting sanitary control and hygiene measures, and to allow, once again, that nations, especially those that depend almost exclusively on their income, begin to recover the time that the global outbreak of the new coronavirus has caused them to lose.

Why is World Tourism Day observed on September 27? 

The General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) chose September 27 to celebrate World Tourism Day to coincide with the anniversary of the adoption of the UNWTO Statutes, which took place on September 27, 1970. Another reason is the end of the holiday season in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of the holiday season in the southern hemisphere.

The first time World Tourism Day was celebrated on September 27, 1980 and since then the date has been closely linked to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals outlined by the United Nations Organization.

World Tourism Day

 

The growth of tourism worldwide has been literally exponential, going from just 25 million tourists in 1950 to 1.3 billion in 2019, the year before the start of the Covid 19 pandemic. Travel and tourism revenues, meanwhile, have grown from $2 billion to $1.26 trillion over the same period.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, improved working conditions in many countries, the growth of the middle class worldwide, cheaper transportation and the use of new technologies for travel and travel planning are some of the factors that have contributed to these figures.

The tourism sector has diversified greatly in the 21st century, precisely because of this growth, and the specialization of agencies and destinations is becoming more and more intense.

Also, because of this growth, it is important to raise public awareness of the need for sustainable tourism, which brings long-term benefits to countries and communities, helping their development. 

This 2021, World Tourism Day will have as its theme "Tourism for Inclusive Growth". The COVID-19 pandemic has been a colossal setback for all sectors, but has impacted tourism in particular.

Reviving the sector will help drive growth and social recovery, but it is essential that the benefits are distributed equitably, broadly and fairly so that it can reach the most disadvantaged sectors of society.

So as we celebrate World Tourism Day, it is also a time to recognize the transformative power of travel and tourism; it is a time to seek to realize tourism's potential in forging a better and more equitable future.

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