Brussels, 23/07/2010 (Agence Europe) - The latest prospects on tourism in Europe, which were published by the European Travel Commission - ETC - (second quarterly report 2010), point to a slight upturn in the course of 2010. This upturn, which started in the first months of the year, was however spoiled by the eruption of the Icelandic volcano, which froze the skies of Europe for several weeks in late April and early May and caused the greatest chaos in air traffic since the Second World War. This incident lost a net total of $1.7 billion for the aviation and tourism sectors and saw the cancellation of some 100,000 flights, affecting the travel plans of around 6 million European travellers. Additionally, the levels of upturn differ between countries, as some of them have continued to record a drop in tourist activity. The report indicates that of the 28 European countries surveyed, only 15 of them registered an increase in the early months of 2010, compared to the previous year. The austerity which has been necessary in the European countries, the weakness of the euro and the pound sterling against the dollar, plus the competition from the emerging countries of Asia and Latin America, which are picking up again from the economic crisis more quickly, mean that only a small improvement to European tourism levels can be expected for 2010. For the whole of Europe, the ETC anticipates an average 3% increase for this year, following a 6% decline last year. This growth is set to speed up in 2011, to reach 2008 levels once again. This upturn will be caused by more intra-European travel, but also by travellers from outside encouraged to visit by the drop in value of the euro and the British pound, the ETC stresses. This trend is already producing its effects: the hotel occupancy rate is up across Europe. In northern and western Europe, more specifically, this increase comes hand in hand with an increase in hotel bedroom rates, which had tended to fall in 2009. (I.L./transl.fl)