FORUM: "Tourism and Sustainable Transformation." World Tourism Day 2025. The theme highlights tourism’s transformative potential as an agent of positive change. Realizing this potential, however, demands more than growth alone. Tourism is often highlighted for its role in economic development. But it is more than that. It is a catalyst for social progress, delivering education, employment and creating new opportunities for all. However, the sector demands more than growth alone. To unlock these benefits, a deliberate and inclusive approach is essential, one that places sustainability, resilience and social equity at the core of tourism development and decision-making.
The Key points to consider for a more sustainable world are:
- Effective governance and people-centric planning: Investment in education and skills, especially for youth, women, and communities at risk of exclusion is crucial.
- Innovation and responsible entrepreneurship: Digitalization and innovative business models present immense opportunities. Thus, supporting MSMEs and startups, can significantly contribute to inclusive prosperity and sustainable economic diversification.
- Prioritize sustainable investments: It includes long-term community benefits, resilience building and climate action. Responsible stewardship of natural resources is another core element. Tourism stakeholders must work on reducing emissions, conserving biodiversity and investing in resilient infrastructure to safeguard our natural resources and ecosystems and ensure resource availability for future generations.
Statement of the United Nations Secretary-General World Tourism Day 2025; September 27th.
Tourism is a powerful driver of transformation
It creates jobs, fuels local economies, supports infrastructure and contributes to development far beyond GDP.
Tourism strengthens bonds between people and places. It builds bridges across cultures, preserves traditions and restores cultural heritage. It reminds us of our shared humanity – and the richness of diversity.
Yet tourism can also damage the very places and communities it celebrates.
As the world faces climate breakdown and rising inequalities, we need bold, urgent, and sustainable action that puts people and planet first.
This year’s theme – “Tourism and Sustainable Transformation” – calls us to action.
That means investing in education and skills, especially for women, youth, and marginalized communities; supporting micro, small and medium-sized enterprises; and advancing climate action by reducing emissions across the tourism sector, conserving biodiversity, and protecting fragile ecosystems.
Today, and every day, let’s harness the power of tourism as a force for transformation, resilience, sustainability, and shared progress for all.
António Guterres.
On September 25th, the 2025 UN Tourism/PATA Forum on Tourism Trends and Outlook (19th Edition) was held. Organized by UN Tourism and the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) in collaboration with the Guilin Municipal People's Government and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, the Forum welcomed over 230 participants from 30 countries, showcasing the potential of this annual regional event to become an international platform to learn from the latest global tourism trends and outlook.
UN Tourism set the scene by presenting its latest data on tourism trends, destinations and source markets from its World Tourism Barometer. The year 2024 saw international tourism achieve full recovery of pre-pandemic levels and projections for 2025 point to continued growth. Following a period of rapid growth, Asia and the Pacific suffered the deepest impact on its tourism industry due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2025, the region's recovery for international tourism arrivals is catching up with the rest of the world thanks to relaxed visa policies and improved air connectivity. Asia and the Pacific exceeded the world average in the first half of 2025, with an 11% increase in international tourist arrivals over the same period in 2024, though still 8% below 2019 levels. North-East Asia led the recovery in the region with 20% tourism growth in January-June 2025 (compared with 2024), hinting at the important influence of China as the world's largest tourism source market.
For its 19th edition, the Forum focused on the power of data to build a smart and sustainable tourism ecosystem, and the possible synergies across tourisms sectors to bring that ecosystem to life. The technical sessions brought together governmental representatives and tourism industry experts from Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, Spain, Republic of Korea and Vietnam to explore governance and policies backed by innovative data and intelligence systems, as well as the role of awareness raising, collaboration and engagement with all relevant stakeholders at the local and governmental level.
The importance of capitalisation on young talent educated on the importance of data and research was presented by renowned Chinese academia and industry representatives, while lessons for the MICE sector from China, Greece and the Republic of Korea highlighted untapped opportunities in investing in market intelligence practices to identify the most suitable innovative technological resources and potential cross-border partnerships.
The concept of Smart Destinations and Platforms were explored by Saudi Arabia, Republic of Korea and Spain, offering a unique gateway to assess opportunities and challenges of the complex processes that led these destinations to embrace digitalization for enhanced visitor experience, tackle pressing challenges, reinforce collaboration among tourism stakeholders and contribute to the well-being of local communities. The Forum was further enriched by keynote speeches from Fliggy and TUI, respectively UN Tourism partner and Affiliate Member, who provided more insights from their own company's data on European markets to Asia and the Pacific, and on Chinese tourism trends and the rise of digitalisation in the Chinese tourism sector.
Next year, UN Tourism, PATA, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Guilin Municipal People's Government will be collaborating for the 20th edition of the Forum.
To learn more about the 2025 UN Tourism/PATA Forum on Tourism Trends and Outlook (19th Edition); Download News Release.
PUBLICATION: The World Tourism Barometer is a publication of the World
Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) that monitors shortterm tourism trends on a regular basis to provide global tourism stakeholders with up-to-date analysis oninternational tourism.
The information is updated several times a year and
includes an analysis of the latest data on tourism
destinations (inbound tourism) and source markets
(outbound tourism). The Barometer also includes three
times a year a Confidence Index based on the UN Tourism
Panel of Experts survey, which provides an evaluation of
recent performance and short-term prospects on
international tourism. Data collection for this issue was closed mid-May 2025.
The next issue of the World Tourism Barometer with more
comprehensive results is scheduled to be published in
September 2025. Data was compiled
from the Tourism Market Intelligence Database and the
Tourism Statistics Database based on official country
sources
COMMUNICATION MATERIALS: The UN World Tourism Organization has prepared a website that includes digital materials and a world map where you can share your event. You can use the communication material prepared by UN Tourism. It includes social media cards, key messages, videos, customizable cards, and more branded material. Get the Poster of the World Tourism Day 2025!
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