The research uncovered some interesting findings, notably that people are now considering travelling much further for their holidays, to places that they may not have considered a decade ago, such as Southeast Asia, India and the Middle East, while the likes of France and Spain have both seen a decline in overall interest (although they’re still among the most popular destinations in the world).
When we look at the changing popularity around country destinations, the Philippines has seen the greatest increase in searcher interest over the past decade, with a huge 170.45% increase.
On the other hand, tourism to Egypt has declined massively over the last ten years and it was also the country with the biggest ten-year decline in searches (84.8%). However, recent figures suggest that the country may be on the road to recovery, with visitors slowly starting to make their way back.
10 countries with the biggest increase
Philippines +170.45%
South Korea +76.11%
Saudi Arabia +56.41%
Kazakhstan +47.83%
Netherlands +43.17%
Taiwan +41.67%
Poland +26.29%
Bahrain +23.51%
India +13.46%
Germany +12.15%
10 countries with the biggest decrease
Egypt -84.80%
Tunisia -71.20%
Turkey -67.04%
France -54.34%
Brazil -49.46%
Dominican Republic -46.29%
Puerto Rico -43.10%
Australia -42.43%
Bulgaria -41.53%
Ireland -41.30%
The findings show that when it comes to city break destinations, Budapest came out on top, with an 87.20% increase in searcher interest over the last 10 years. This is also reflected in official tourism figures, which have risen by 39.58% (according to Euromonitor).
At the other end of the scale, the once-thriving Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheikh is at the bottom, with a 91.47% decrease in searcher interest over the last ten years. A number of terror attacks and political unrest in surrounding areas have led to many governments advising against travel to the resort.
10 cities with the biggest increase
Budapest +87.20%
Seoul +70.48%
Copenhagen +68.24%
Tel Aviv +63.31%
Warsaw +63.08%
Chennai +62.83%
Jeju +61.90%
Kyoto +61.25%
Jaipur +53.33%
Lisbon +53.14%
10 cities with the biggest decrease
Sharm El Sheikh -91.47%
St. Petersburg -79.65%
Cairo -74.67%
Las Vegas -60.13%
Varna – 51.03%
Phuket -47.70%
Miami -47.56%
Penang -46.56%
New York -45.21%
Calgary -42.73%