Tourism demand seen to shrink by 60% in 2020

Tourism demand or the amount of money spent by domestic and foreign tourists in Finland may see a year-on year decline of around 60%, or EUR 9.8 billion, in 2020, if it starts to rise in September, according to an official estimate.

If, however, the demand starts to perk up as late as in December, the total demand in 2020 in the travel and tourism sector will decline by about 70%, or EUR 10.9 billion, from EUR 16.1 billion spent by tourists in 2019.

The estimates have been prepared by the economic affairs and employment ministry in cooperation with Visit Finland, Statistics Finland, and the Finnish Hospitality Association MaRa, said a government press release

According to the estimates, tourism demand will not reach last year’s level before 2022.

Domestic tourism demand is estimated to fall by 50 to 60%, or roughly EUR 4.5–5.1 billion euros in 2020. The domestic tourism accounts for nearly 55% of the total tourism demand in the country, making it the key cash-flow generator for many companies in the tourism sector.

The coronavirus crisis will cut the foreign tourism demand this year by more than 70%, or EUR 3.5–3.9 billion, year on year. This represents a significant proportion of Finland’s service exports, of which tourism accounts for 16%, making tourism the third most important sector of service exports. Over the past few years, tourism exports have shown a strong growth.

Domestic demand generated by Finns making trips abroad is showing the biggest relative decrease of almost 80%, or around EUR 2 billion. Travel abroad accounts for about 15% of the total travel and tourism demand, consisting largely of services provided by domestic airlines, shipping companies, and travel agencies.