European tourism in 2023 saw an average hotel occupancy of 58.2% and over half of all bookings made online. Three in four travelers used mobile devices for trip planning or booking.
Key Takeaways
- 50% of EU visitors in 2022 used accommodation types classified as hotels/collective accommodation — measures accommodation preference share (Eurostat tourism accommodation statistics)
- In 2023, the EU hotel occupancy rate averaged 58.2% — measures annual lodging demand performance
- Online travel bookings represented 56% of EU tourism bookings in 2023 — measures digital booking penetration (industry surveys from major travel data firms)
- Europe accounted for 39% of global online travel transactions in 2023 — measures regional share of online travel volume
- 3 in 4 travelers used mobile devices to plan or book travel in Europe in 2023 (share of travelers using mobile during the travel journey, industry survey)
- Approximately 25 million jobs supported by tourism in Europe in 2019 (WTTC estimate for total contribution to employment)
- RevPAR in Europe reached €93 in 2023 (revenue per available room performance metric, STR Global)
- Europe accounted for 38% of global travel agency sales volume in 2023 (regional share, industry commerce report)
- 44% of European tourism enterprises used at least one CRM system by 2022 (adoption metric, industry survey)
- €40 billion investment in European hospitality and tourism infrastructure in 2023 (capex estimate, investment report)
- Fuel costs were 27% of European airlines’ operating expenses in 2023 (cost structure metric, industry financial analysis)
- European labor costs per employee in accommodation and food services averaged €34,000 in 2022 (unit labor cost/labor cost proxy, OECD)
- 68% of European hotels offer contactless check-in options in 2023 (feature adoption metric)
- 73% of European travel companies use cloud-based booking and reservation systems in 2022 (cloud adoption metric, vendor survey)
- 45% of European hotels implemented self-service kiosks by 2023 (digital channel adoption metric)
In 2023, Europe’s tourism surged with rising accommodation demand, heavy online and mobile booking, and strong hotel profitability.
Related reading
01 · Category
Performance & Demand2 stats
01
50% of EU visitors in 2022 used accommodation types classified as hotels/collective accommodation — measures accommodation preference share (Eurostat tourism accommodation statistics)
02
In 2023, the EU hotel occupancy rate averaged 58.2% — measures annual lodging demand performance
Interpretation
Performance & Demand Interpretation
In the Performance and Demand category, EU tourism demand shows a strong reliance on hotels as 50% of EU visitors in 2022 stayed in hotel or collective accommodation, and this demand is reflected in the 2023 average hotel occupancy rate of 58.2%.
02 · Category
Industry Trends4 stats
01
Online travel bookings represented 56% of EU tourism bookings in 2023 — measures digital booking penetration (industry surveys from major travel data firms)
02
Europe accounted for 39% of global online travel transactions in 2023 — measures regional share of online travel volume
03
3 in 4 travelers used mobile devices to plan or book travel in Europe in 2023 (share of travelers using mobile during the travel journey, industry survey)
04
Short-term rentals accounted for 19% of available accommodation inventory in major European cities in 2023 (share of lodging listings, platform analytics)
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
In Europe’s industry trends, online bookings reached 56% of EU tourism bookings in 2023 and Europe drove 39% of global online transactions, showing a clear shift toward digital travel fueled by widespread mobile usage where 3 in 4 travelers planned or booked on mobile, alongside the growing impact of short-term rentals at 19% of accommodation inventory in major cities.
03 · Category
Market Size1 stats
01
Approximately 25 million jobs supported by tourism in Europe in 2019 (WTTC estimate for total contribution to employment)
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
In 2019, tourism in Europe supported about 25 million jobs, underscoring that from a market size perspective it is a major employer across the region.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics5 stats
01
RevPAR in Europe reached €93 in 2023 (revenue per available room performance metric, STR Global)
02
Europe accounted for 38% of global travel agency sales volume in 2023 (regional share, industry commerce report)
03
44% of European tourism enterprises used at least one CRM system by 2022 (adoption metric, industry survey)
04
Hotel gross operating profit margin averaged 18% in Europe in 2023 (profitability metric, hotel financial benchmarking)
05
Visitor nights in European accommodations rose by 26% in 2023 vs. 2022 (demand growth metric)
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Performance metrics across Europe point to a strong 2023 rebound, with RevPAR hitting €93 and visitor nights up 26% versus 2022, while profitability also held up with an average 18% hotel gross operating profit margin.
05 · Category
Cost Analysis7 stats
01
€40 billion investment in European hospitality and tourism infrastructure in 2023 (capex estimate, investment report)
02
Fuel costs were 27% of European airlines’ operating expenses in 2023 (cost structure metric, industry financial analysis)
03
European labor costs per employee in accommodation and food services averaged €34,000 in 2022 (unit labor cost/labor cost proxy, OECD)
04
Energy prices increased by 16% in the EU accommodation sector in 2023 (input cost inflation metric, sectoral energy report)
05
Payment processing fees for merchants average 2.3% of transaction value in Europe in 2023 (card acceptance fee benchmark)
06
Average wage growth for accommodation and food services workers was 6.1% in the EU in 2023 (labor cost growth metric)
07
Average room cleaning labor time was 1.4 hours per stay in European hotels (operational cost driver metric, benchmarking study)
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
For Europe’s tourism industry, costs are being squeezed on multiple fronts in 2023, with fuel taking 27% of airlines’ operating expenses, energy prices rising 16% in EU accommodation, and payment processing fees averaging 2.3% of transaction value while wage growth reached 6.1% in accommodation and food services.
06 · Category
Technology Adoption6 stats
01
68% of European hotels offer contactless check-in options in 2023 (feature adoption metric)
02
73% of European travel companies use cloud-based booking and reservation systems in 2022 (cloud adoption metric, vendor survey)
03
45% of European hotels implemented self-service kiosks by 2023 (digital channel adoption metric)
04
Europe’s online travel spend reached $220 billion in 2023 (e-commerce transaction value metric, industry estimates)
05
Hotel direct booking share reached 43% in Europe in 2023 (channel mix metric from distribution study)
06
11% of European travel companies had fully automated customer service (chatbots/automation) by 2023 (automation adoption metric)
Interpretation
Technology Adoption Interpretation
Technology adoption across European tourism is clearly accelerating, with 68% of hotels offering contactless check-in and 45% using self-service kiosks by 2023, while cloud-based booking is already in use by 73% of travel companies in 2022 and only 11% have fully automated customer service.
report visual · Breakdown
Tourism demand and booking channels in Europe
Hotel demand is strong and growing, while a large share of bookings is shifting online and increasingly through mobile.
56%
Online travel bookings represented 56% of EU tourism bookings in 2023 — measures digital booking penetration (industry s
44%
44% of European tourism enterprises used at least one CRM system by 2022 (adoption metric, industry survey)
source-verifiedphocuswright.com · gartner.com2023
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Elif Demirci. (2026, February 13). Tourism In Europe Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/tourism-in-europe-statistics
MLA
Elif Demirci. "Tourism In Europe Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/tourism-in-europe-statistics.
Chicago
Elif Demirci. 2026. "Tourism In Europe Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/tourism-in-europe-statistics.
Sources & references
25 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+5 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)