The geography of tourism in Europe: Exploring countries and regions of higher or lower development of tourism in the period of crisis

Tourism is a fundamental sector at the global level and constitutes a development pillar of the European economy. Tourism exerts a great impact on employment and output and as a result it may constitute a basic tool for economic recovery after a period of recession. Therefore, apart from its economic dimension tourism has a major social impact. Also, it should be pointed out that tourism is a complex product and is currently examined under the spectrum of the recent global financial crisis. Due to the aforementioned factors, the existence of a unified and coherent analysis is essential so as to explore the distribution of tourism activity among countries and regions of Europe. As a result, the relative importance of this sector for several parts of Europe is analyzed providing a useful framework for the enhancement of tourism competitiveness, the prosperity of people, the job enhancement as well as the reinforcement of the associated natural and cultural poles of attraction.