RICHMOND, VA. - Following a substantial decrease in U.S. travelers planning to spend their holiday in Paris last year, the City of Lights projects a 16.3 percent increase in U.S. visitors for the 2017 season, according to part two of Allianz Global Assistance's Top 10 Holiday Destination Report. Despite this increase, parts of the United Kingdom, including London and Manchester, will experience a decrease from 2016 levels.
Allianz Global Assistance reviewed more than 760,000 Americans' travel plans* during the peak holiday travel season, Thanksgiving through New Year's, and found that while Paris saw a significant decrease in American travelers during last year's holiday season (down 12.8 percent from 2015), the city has risen for 2017 and remains as the second most popular European destination.
London continues to be the most prevalent European destination for U.S. travelers despite London Heathrow Airport expecting a 10.9 percent decrease in U.S. holiday travel from 2016. Manchester also saw a significant decrease in holiday travel this year, dropping 26.6 percent since 2016.
Rome, Frankfurt and Amsterdam rounded out the top five European travel destinations for 2017, with Rome showing the biggest increase in travel (56.4 percent increase from 2016). Rome's shift in ranking from eighth to third is the second most drastic shift in the review's findings, following Reykjavik, Iceland, which jumped in ranking from 24th to 11th, a 143.9 percent increase in number of travel plans.
In addition to Rome and Reykjavik, the cities that benefited most from the redistribution of American travelers interested in visiting Europe include: Geneva, increased by 36.8 percent; and Athens, increased by 32.4 percent.
Overall, Europe recorded an impressive 9.2 percent increase of American travelers.
"We're pleased to see that Americans' confidence in European travel, particularly to Paris, is returning this holiday season," said Daniel Durazo, director of communications at Allianz Global Assistance USA. "While world events including terrorism continue to impact travelers' interest in traveling to the United Kingdom, London remains the top holiday travel destination, and many other cities like Rome, Reykjavik and Athens are enjoying nice gains in popularity this year."
Allianz Global Assistance offers travel insurance through most major U.S. airlines, leading travel agents, online travel agencies and directly to consumers.
Destination (Airport Code)
|
% Change In U.S. Visitors
2016-2017 |
2016 Rank
|
2017 Rank
|
Rank Change
2016-2017 |
London, United Kingdom (LHR)
|
-10.9 percent
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
Paris, France (CDG)
|
16.3 percent
|
2
|
2
|
0
|
Rome, Italy (FCO)
|
56.4 percent
|
8
|
3
|
5
|
Frankfurt, Germany (FRA)
|
8.9 percent
|
3
|
4
|
-1
|
Amsterdam, Netherlands (AMS)
|
19.6 percent
|
4
|
5
|
-1
|
Madrid, Spain (MAD)
|
16.9 percent
|
5
|
6
|
-1
|
Barcelona, Spain (BCN)
|
6.0 percent
|
9
|
7
|
2
|
Munich, Germany (MUC)
|
-0.5 percent
|
7
|
8
|
-1
|
Dublin, Ireland (DUB)
|
-3.9 percent
|
6
|
9
|
-3
|
Zurich, Switzerland (ZRH)
|
13.9 percent
|
10
|
10
|
0
|
Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF)
|
143.9 percent
|
24
|
11
|
13
|
Brussels, Belgium (BRU)
|
26.6 percent
|
13
|
12
|
1
|
Milan, Italy (MXP)
|
15.6 percent
|
14
|
13
|
1
|
Lisbon, Portugal (LIS)
|
37.4 percent
|
17
|
14
|
3
|
Vienna, Austria (VIE)
|
-5.9 percent
|
12
|
15
|
-3
|
Berlin, Germany (TXL)
|
12.1 percent
|
15
|
16
|
-1
|
London, United Kingdom (LGW)
|
77.3 percent
|
25
|
17
|
8
|
Athens, Greece (ATH)
|
32.4 percent
|
20
|
18
|
2
|
Geneva, Switzerland (GVA)
|
36.8 percent
|
21
|
19
|
2
|
Manchester, United Kingdom (MAN)
|
-26.6 percent
|
11
|
20
|
-9
|
*Methodology: The data of U.S. travelers' booking intent to purchase flights to European airports was gathered by analyzing the number of customers that went through the online booking process of airfare and package paths for partners offering Allianz Global Assistance travel insurance from June 1 to October 15, 2017 to generate itineraries for travel to Europe from the US during peak Holiday travel season (11/22/2017 – 1/08/2018), compared to the same purchasing in 2016 to peak 2017 Holiday travel dates (11/23/2016 – 1/09/2017).
