Tourists are very fickle beasts, even the perception that a destination is risky will lead to a marked decrease in tourist traffic.
“The number of international tourist arrivals (overnight visitors) in 2015 reached a total of 1186 million, an increase of 52 million over the previous year. (…) Demand was robust overall, although results were more mixed than usual across destinations. Three major factors influenced tourism flows in 2015: the unusually strong exchange rate fluctuations, the decline in the price of oil and other commodities which increased disposable income in importing countries but weakened tourism demand in exporting countries, as well as increased global concern about safety and security.
By UNWTO region, the Americas and Asia and the Pacific both recorded close to 6% growth in international tourist arrivals, with Europe recording 5%. Arrivals in the Middle East increased by 2%, while in Africa comparatively limited data points to an estimated 3% decline, mostly due to the weak results in North Africa. By subregion, the best results were recorded by SouthEast Asia (+8%), Oceania, the Caribbean, Central America and Northern Europe (all +7%), followed by North America and South America (both +6%).” (Quoted from the World Tourism Barometer 2016)
