AirAsia Operations to Return to Pre-Pandemic Levels By December

International tourism has continued to recover from the worst crisis in its history as arrival numbers reached 84% of pre-pandemic levels between January and July 2023, according to the latest data from UNWTO. The Middle East, Europe and Africa lead the global sector’s rebound.

While India has been making its way up as a top source country for outbound travel, the country’s inbound tourism has still not been able to touch the almost 11-million foreign arrivals of 2019. According to the Ministry of Tourism, India received 6.2 million foreign tourists in 2022.

International tourism reached 84% of its pre-pandemic level between January and July 2023, according to the UN World Tourism Organization. Around 700 million tourists traveled internationally.

International travelers spent $18 billion on travel to, and within the U.S. in July., down by $1.5 billion from its pre-pandemic level, according to the National Travel and Tourism Office’s latest data. Spending on strictly goods and services like recreation, lodging and food totaled $9.7 billion in July 2023.

Hotel occupancy and room rates have bounced back to pre-pandemic numbers, primarily due to the soaring demand for the G20 Summitto be held in New Delhi on September 9 to 10. 

Ireland’s overseas inbound tourism level for the year is set to hit 75 percent of 2019 levels, CEO of Tourism Ireland Niall Gibbons told The Sunday Times (London).

Malaysia’s Capital A will not be merging its airlines, but will instead move all the carriers under one existing structure, similar to how British Airways, Iberia Airline, and Aer Lingus operate under the International Airlines Group umbrella, said CEO Tony Fernandes on Monday.

Capital A Berhad, the parent of Malaysian budget airline AirAsia, reported a narrower third-quarter operating loss on Wednesday, buoyed by a strong rebound in travel demand and the easing of pandemic-related restrictions in Southeast Asia.

Malaysia’s Capital A has submitted plans for a corporate restructuring, which will involve the merger of its low-cost airline AirAsia with long-haul carrier AirAsia X.

U.S. hotels added 10,000 jobs in December, a decrease from the previous month amid the hotel industry’s ongoing inability to approach pre-Covid employment levels.

AirAsia Aviation Group on Friday announced a joint venture with Cambodia-based Sivilai Asia to launch a new low-cost carrier — AirAsia Cambodia.

Both the Middle East and Europe are on track to reach their pre-pandemic levels in 2023 , according to the UN World Tourism Organization. Last year saw a stronger than expected recovery for the global tourism economy.