These Are the Countries To Watch in Europe’s Tourism Recovery

Europe was close to reaching its pre-pandemic tourism levels last year, but some countries started to go above and beyond in early 2024, according to a recent report from the European Travel Commission.

While not every European country shared data on foreign visits, some countries welcomed more tourists earlier this year than during the same period in 2019. Based on data from reporting countries, foreign arrivals were up 7.2%, and foreign overnights were up 6.5%.

Here are the key players to watch as Europe makes its comeback:

Serbia had the highest growth rate in international arrivals since 2019.

“Serbia continues to stand out as a growth destination this year as tourism activity remains well above 2019 and up on last year. There is confidence that this is not a temporary surge post-Covid,” the report said.

International arrivals in Türkiye and Malta also grew significantly in the first quarter of 2024 compared to pre-pandemic levels. According to the Euro