Cultural tourism accounts for 40% of all tourism in Europe.
62% confidence
OtherEurope
Omissions
The 40% figure originates from UNWTO (UN Tourism) estimates for GLOBAL international tourism, not from a Europe-specific study. The MEP applied a global statistic to Europe without specifying the geographic scope.
The UNWTO 'Tourism and Culture Synergies' report (2018) actually estimates cultural tourism at approximately 36% of inbound tourism across UNWTO member states, not exactly 40%. The 'around 40%' figure appears in a 2016 UNWTO press release as a rounded estimate.
No Europe-specific primary source (Eurostat, European Commission) was found that confirms cultural tourism represents 40% of all tourism in Europe. Eurostat does publish tourism statistics but does not appear to break them down by 'cultural tourism' as a defined category.
The MEP did not cite any source for the claim, making independent verification dependent on secondary references to UNWTO data.
Sources
PrimaryUN Tourism (UNWTO)UNWTO estimates that cultural tourism accounts for around 40% of international tourist arrivals, as per the report 'Tourism and Culture Synergies'.
SecondaryCBI.eu (Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs)Cultural tourism is one of the largest tourism segments. It is thought that 40% of international tourists travel to experience culture.