In what may be the least surprising news of the day, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is reporting that international tourism numbers are down 65 percent in the first half of the year. But if that doesn’t seem too bad – “considering” – the report states that June saw a 93 percent drop when compared to 2019, illustrating the severe impact that COVID-19 has had on the global tourism industry.

According to the new issue of the World Tourism Barometer from the United Nations specialized agency, the 65-percent decline represents an “unprecedented decrease,” as countries around the world closed their borders and introduced travel restrictions in response to the pandemic, which began to be fully realized in March.

But there is a glimmer of hope on the horizon. As we reported Monday, over recent weeks a growing number of destinations have started to open up again to international tourists with the UNWTO reporting that, as of early September, 53 percent of destinations had eased travel restrictions.

Nevertheless, many governments remain cautious, and this latest report shows that the lockdowns introduced during the first half of the year have had a massive impact on international tourism placing millions of travel- and tourism-related jobs and businesses at risk.

According to UNWTO, the massive drop in international travel demand over the period January-June 2020 translates into a loss of 440 million international arrivals and about US$460 billion in export revenues from international tourism. This is around five times the loss in international tourism receipts recorded in 2009 amid the global economic and financial crisis.