Brazil’s Tourism Improves After Pandemic

One of the sectors of the world economy most affected by the covid-19 pandemic, tourism has shown a good recovery. According to data from the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), in the first three months of 2023 it reached 80% of pre-pandemic levels. There were around 235 million tourists, more than double the same period in 2022.

Even with that breath, tourism has not yet reached the levels of 2019, and it may take time to reach them due to inflation and fuel prices, warns the UNWTO. Also this trend of rising prices makes destinations increasingly closer to the countries of origin of tourists. The only region in the world that showed growth in tourism was the Middle East, with an increase of 15%, surpassing 2019 levels. Another highlight is the ongoing international conflict, the invasion of Ukraine by Russia since the beginning of last year.

Thinking about this scenario and the importance of tourism worldwide and nationally, the debut episode of the bulletin A Ciência do Turismo seeks to deepen the concept of tourism, explaining the multiplicity of areas benefited by it. Alexandre Panosso Netto, professor and coordinator of the Graduate Program in Tourism at the School of Arts, Sciences and Humanities (EACH) at USP, discusses the birth of tourism and how it works.

What is tourism?
Tourism is seen as a market, sector, phenomenon or area of ​​study and encompasses activities related to travel, whether motivated by leisure, business, work, events, health treatments, among other reasons.

The commercial tourism sector, an important source of income for many countries, involves the supply and demand for tourist services, such as transportation, accommodation, food, entertainment and cultural attractions. Data from UNWTO show that spending by tourists in places of visit also presented encouraging numbers at the beginning of the year.

Europe reached US$550 billion in revenue from tourism, accounting for 87% of pre-pandemic revenue, followed by Africa at 75% and the Middle East at 70%. The Americas come fourth, ahead of Asia and Oceania. In Brazil, according to the Ministry of Tourism, in the first five months it was R$ 13 billion, a volume 35.9% higher than that registered in the same period of 2022.

These differences are explained by the characteristics of each destination, but some aspects are common to all. As Panosso explains, tourism is a seasonal activity, with periods of high and low season. In many destinations, the high season occurs during the summer months or on festive dates, when there is greater demand for travel, in addition to the tourist market being highly dependent on other sectors.

This market form, in which we have producers of tourist goods and services on the one hand, consumers on the other, and intermediaries such as travel agents, originated a little before the mid-19th century, when the railways were invented. With the rise of air transport and the automobile in the 20th century, tourism has become a huge global business and today is one of the most competitive sectors.

national scenario
Brazil received, in the first five months of 2023, 2.97 million tourists, an increase of 108% compared to last year. Of these, 1.24 million are Argentines, followed by Americans (271.1 thousand) and Paraguayans (215.5 thousand). Among the destinations, the Southeast and the South stand out.


Even so, the national tourism sector is still underutilized. “We received, in our best year, around 6.5 million international tourists. It is little compared to other Latin American countries, such as Mexico, Costa Rica and Argentina”, says the professor.

The largest tourist flow is domestic, from Brazilians traveling in the country. Around 2013 and 2014, there were more than 100 million plane trips domestically. The number of private car and bus trips is estimated to be at least double that.

Tourism involves the creation of jobs, cultural encounters, socializing processes, appreciation of the environment and distribution of wealth. However, this practice can also bring negative implications, such as environmental problems, pollution, degradation of fragile ecosystems and excessive consumption of natural resources, or even the cultural mischaracterization of certain destinations caused by the high number of visitors it receives.

“For the sector to develop well, a lot of technology, public and private programs and projects, infrastructure, political, economic, social, health and environmental stability are needed, in addition, of course, to a lot of scientific research”, says the professor.

In the next episodes of the newsletter A Ciência do Turismo , students from the Graduate Program in Tourism at EACH-USP will talk about scientific research and new topics in tourism.