European ferry ports have sounded the alarm about the impact of the EU's new EES checks this summer at the same time as global tourism chiefs say travellers from around the world are being put off by the prospect of long border delays in Europe.
Survey reveals travellers may not come to Europe due to EES fears
Around a third of visitors from the UK, US, Canada and Australia would be less likely to travel to the Schengen area if regular waits due to the rollout of the new EU border system would reach three to four hours, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has warned.
A survey of more than 2,500 travellers carried out in four countries showed that on average 33 percent could avoid travelling to the Schengen area if queues were to regularly exceed three hours. On this basis, the WTTC estimated that up to 41 million arrivals could be at risk “from four of Europe's most important source markets.”
Among respondents, Britons were the least likely to travel in long-wait scenarios (39 percent), followed by US and Canadian citizens (33 percent), and Australians (27 percent).
