Tourist expenditure refers to all the money people spend during tourism trips in the places and spaces they visit. It is typically measured in terms of expenditures of international outbound visitors in other countries, but it can also be evaluated at regional levels.
However, it is important to note that only a portion of the actual expenditure is taken into account. This is because the definition of what constitutes “tourism expenditure” is limited to certain branches of the national accounts that are considered to be “tourism-related”, plus certain activities that have been included in the Tourism Satellite Account framework (see Tourism Satellite Account).
As a result, some expenditure is not captured by tourism statistics. Because tourists often make purchases from a variety of different operators, not all of which may be included in the branches of the economy considered as “tourism-related”, it can be challenging to capture all of the expenditure associated with tourism in official statistics, such as spending on food that does not take place in restaurants. This can lead to an undercount of the total expenditure and a reduction in the estimated multiplier effect of tourism.