SAO PAULO, April 4 (Xinhua) -- Brazil is set to host the world's leading business to business (B2B) travel fair, the World Travel Market (WTM) Latin America 2022 between April 5 and 7 in the city of Sao Paulo, organizers said Monday.

WTM Latin America, which was last held in person in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic, is expected to draw 500 companies and state tourism promotion boards from 33 countries this year as travel picks up following the relaxation of social distancing restrictions to curb the novel coronavirus disease.

There is "a wave of optimism and hope in the tourism industry," the manager of the WTM for Brazil and Latin America, Bianca Pizzolito, said at a press conference.

The director of WTM Latin America, Simon Mayle, added that 2022 will be the year of tourism's global recovery.

Passenger flows at the Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo, the most important air hub in South America, increased 47 percent in March compared to the same month in 2021, Mayle said.