Paris, France has been called many names, including the “City of Lights” and the “City of Love.” France’s capital can now call itself “the most powerful urban destination in the world”, according to a new report.
The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) report looks at cities around the world and analyzes key economic indicators for those cities, such as the contribution of travel and tourism to their gross domestic product (GDP), the number of people working in the travel and tourism industry in that city and the amount of money visitors spend there each year. The report was sponsored by the financial services company Visa and researched in partnership with the economic consulting firm Oxford Economics.
Paris has earned the honor of “world’s most powerful urban destination” as its travel and tourism sector is set to earn a world-leading almost US$36 billion in 2022, according to the WTTC. Interestingly, however, this amount represents only 3.5% of the city’s economy.
Beijing is the second largest urban destination in the world, as its travel and tourism industry earned almost US$33 billion last year.
Two US cities, Orlando, Florida and Las Vegas, were also ranked in the top 5 for largest urban destinations — showing how important tourism is to each city’s economy. In 2022, travel and tourism brought in just over $33 billion in revenue for Orlando, a whopping 20.4 percent of its gross domestic product, the WTTC reports.
Meanwhile, Las Vegas’ travel and tourism sector is worth nearly $23 billion in 2022, just over 16 percent of the city’s economic income, according to the WTTC.
Here are the top 10 “world’s most powerful urban destinations” based on the impact of travel and tourism on GDP, according to the WTTC.
- Paris ($35.65 billion)
- Beijing ($32.62 billion)
- Orlando ($31.1 billion)
- Shanghai ($29.69 billion)
- Las Vegas ($22.99 billion)
- New York ($21.09 billion)
- Tokyo ($17.97 billion)
- Mexico City ($16.76 billion)
- London ($14.92 billion)
- Guangzhou ($13.15 billion)
A look at projected growth
The WTTC predicts that some cities on the list will move up the rankings over the next 10 years, while others will slip. China’s national travel and tourism sector, for example, has invested heavily over the past 10 years in new hotels, transport infrastructure and the construction of tourist destinations to make its cities more attractive to both international and domestic travellers.
Consequently, by 2032, Beijing, for example, is expected to become “the world’s most powerful urban destination” as its travel and tourism industry is expected to bring in just over US$77 billion, the WTTC predicts. In addition, Shanghai’s travel and tourism sector, worth nearly $30 billion, is expected to more than double to $71 billion by 2032, WTTC continues. This would make Shanghai the second most powerful urban destination in the world.
“Great cities like London, Paris and New York will remain global powerhouses, but over the next few years, Beijing, Shanghai and Macau will move up the list of top urban destinations,” said Julia Simpson, president and CEO of WTTC in a statement. “Tourists will always have favorite cities to return to, but as other countries prioritize travel and tourism, we will see new and emerging destinations challenge traditional favourites.”
Here’s WTTC’s prediction of the top 10 “world’s most powerful urban destinations” in 2032, based on travel and tourism’s GDP impact.
- Beijing ($77.28 billion)
- Shanghai ($70.88 billion)
- Paris ($49.15 billion)
- Orlando ($45 billion)
- Las Vegas ($36.55 billion)
- Guangzhou ($34.94 billion)
- New York ($34.28 billion)
- Macau ($33.33 billion)
- Bangkok ($31.52 billion)
- Tokyo ($29.94 billion)
If you’re thinking about international travel and wondering which are the most popular destinations in the world, be sure to read on as well