European Tourism Gets A Summer Boost - Carnival (NYSE:CCL)

Tourists are expected to take advantage of the weaker

by planning a record number of trips to see the continent's many historic landmarks and museums this summer. With the dollar on a high, European cities are expecting to see a flood of first-time American visitors who are better able to afford airfare and accommodation.

Bracing For Crowds

Popular European museums and landmarks are preparing for the influx of visitors by increasing security and urging visitors to book tours and tickets far in advance.

Many museums have already banned the use of selfie sticks and others are setting time limits for viewing in order to shuffle more people in and out.

How To Play It

Investors hoping to cash in on some good deals during the European invasion could look to hotel chains serving the continent's largest cities. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc HOT recently opened a new location in Milan, Italy, where this year's world's fair is expected to bring 20 million visitors to the city.

Cruise lines are another good bet as companies like

Carnival CorpCCL

and

Royal Caribbean Cruises LtdRCL

are likely to see an increase in ticket sales for trips around Southern Europe as travelers look for a fast and easy way to see as many cities as possible.

For those who don't want to put all of their eggs in one basket, mutual funds like T. Rowe Price European Stock Fund PRESX or Vanguard European Stock Index Fund Admiral Shares VEUSX are good ways to invest in the continent as a whole. One major benefit to a weak euro is the business tourism brings into the region. An influx of foreign money will do the economy some good and help support the eurozone's flagging recovery.

Image Credit: Public Domain

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