Maritime Passenger Mobility in the European Union: Trends, Recovery and a Typology of Member States
Purpose: The aim of this article is to identify and assess the differentiated recovery trajectories of maritime passenger mobility in European Union Member States following the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The study focuses on determining the extent to which individual countries restored passenger traffic levels and whether groups of countries characterised by similar recovery patterns can be distinguished over the period 2019–2024. Design/MethodologyApproach: The study covers European Union Member States for which comparable statistical data on maritime passenger transport were available for 2019–2024. Eurostat data on the number of passengers handled in seaports were used. Changes were assessed using growth indices, the Recovery Index and the average post-pandemic recovery growth rate. To identify countries with similar trajectories, hierarchical cluster analysis using Ward’s method was applied after standardisation of the variables. Findings: The results indicate that the recovery of maritime passenger mobility in the European Union was clearly heterogeneous. Despite an overall increase in passenger numbers after 2020, both the pace and scale of recovery differed substantially across Member States. Cluster analysis identified distinct recovery trajectories, ranging from countries that rapidly returned to or exceeded pre-pandemic passenger levels to cases of persistent deep decline. Practical implications: The results make it possible to identify countries characterised by high resilience of maritime passenger mobility systems as well as those in which recovery remains incomplete. The proposed typology may support benchmarking and the assessment of measures aimed at strengthening the resilience of maritime transport. Originality/value: The originality of the study lies in moving beyond analyses of individual countries or ports towards a comparative assessment of maritime passenger mobility recovery trajectories across the European Union. Combining three trajectory indicators with hierarchical cluster analysis makes it possible to empirically organise the differentiated post-COVID-19 recovery paths.