by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 5:11 PM ET, Mon October 8, 2018
A tiny, relatively unknown country located entirely within Italy has become Europe's top-growing travel destination.
According to new data from the UN World Tourism Organization, San Marino, a 23-square-mile country with a population of about 33,000 people, is seeing a surge in visitors. Tourism to the country in 2017 grew by 31.1 percent year-over-year.
San Marino's newfound status was revealed as part of the UNWTO's Tourism Highlights 2018 Edition report.
Providing a wealth of new data, the report also revealed that as of 2017, international tourism has witnessed its highest growth in seven years.
"International tourist arrivals grew 7.0 percent in 2017, the highest increase since the 2009 global economic crisis and well above UNWTO's long-term forecast of 3.8 percent per year for the period 2010 to 2020," states the report.
Recovery of outbound demand from such places as Brazil and the Russian Federation after a few years of decline, and the ongoing rise of India, also contributed to inbound growth in many destinations.
When viewed by region, Africa and Europe grew above average. Breaking it down further, into subregions, North Africa and Southern and Mediterranean Europe led results in 2017, which is reflective of strong demand for destinations along the Mediterranean, according to the report.
Additional unexpected destinations currently witnessing substantial growth include Georgia, with a 27.9 percent increase year over year, Macedonia at 23.5 percent and Azerbaijan, which recorded 20 percent growth. Visitors to Bosnia and Herzegovina meanwhile have increased 18.66 percent.
Other less surprising data in the UNWTO report included that in Western Europe growth was led by top destination France, followed by Belgium, both of which are recovering from the security incidents of previous years.
In the Americas, meanwhile, arrivals are estimated to have increased by five percent with receipts showing a slightly slower growth. Double-digit growth in arrivals was recorded in Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Uruguay, while Central America recorded positive results in almost all destinations in terms of arrivals, led by Nicaragua.
As for that tiny European country of San Marino, where tourism is growing so rapidly, here are some of the key highlights. It is officially known as the Republic of San Marino and also the Most Serene Republic of San Marino. An enclaved microstate located on the northeastern side of the Apennine Mountains, it has been described by Lonely Planet as a land of clifftop castles.
San Marino is among the world's oldest republics and still retains much of its historic architecture. The country's capital, famed for its medieval walled old town, is perched on the slopes of Monte Titano.
Sounds like it may be time for a visit to check it out yourself.
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