Influence of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Tourism in European Countries: Cluster Analysis Findings

Abstract

This article aims to give an overview of tourism at the time of the global crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. In order to assess the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic on European countries, the Systemic Literature Review (SLR) as well as Our World in Data (2021) and EUROSTAT (2021) secondary data were used. In order to group countries with respect to changes taking place in tourism, Ward’s cluster analysis was applied. After verifying the available data, 31 European countries were eventually selected for the analysis. The application of Ward’s method led to four groups of countries being created that are most similar in terms of changes in the tourism sector between 2019 and 2020. The first cluster comprised eight countries with the highest average rate of restrictiveness. On the other hand, this group recorded the lowest rate of changes concerning arrivals by air transport, which was on average 70.32%. The second group comprised 13 countries. In this cluster, the average change in the number of overnight stays and arrivals at tourist resorts was the lowest in comparison with other clusters. The third cluster comprised four countries where the change in arrivals by air transport was the highest, with an average decrease of 81.76%. The fourth group comprised six countries. The average change in the occupancy of hotel rooms and similar overnight accommodation facilities, as well as arrivals at tourist resorts, was the highest in comparison with other clusters. In addition, the countries were characterized by a relatively high decrease in the number of arrivals by air transport, but a relatively low average rate of restrictiveness.