World Tourism rankings
The World Tourism rankings are compiled by the United Nations World Tourism Organization as part of their World Tourism Barometer publication, which is released up to six times per year. In the publication, destinations are ranked by the number of international visitor arrivals, by the revenue generated by inbound tourism, and by the expenditure of outbound travelers.
Most visited destinations by international tourist arrivals
In 2024 there were 1.45 billion international tourists,[1] with a growth of 11.5% compared to 2023 and growth of 215.2% compared to 2021.[2][3]
The top 10 international tourism destinations in 2024 were:[1]
| Rank | Destination | 2024[1] | Change (2023 to 2024) (%) |
2023[4] | 2022[3] | Change (2022 to 2023) (%) |
Change (2021 to 2022) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 102 | 2 | 100 | 79.4 | 25.9 | 64 |
| 2 | Spain | 93.8 | 10.1 | 85.2 | 71.7 | 18.8 | 130 |
| 3 | United States | 72.4 | 8.3 | 66.5 | 50.9 | 30.6 | 130 |
| 4 | Turkey | 60.6 | 10.5 | 55.2 | 50.5 | 9.3 | 69 |
| 5 | Italy | 57.9 | 1.4 | 57.2 | 49.8 | 14.8 | 85 |
| 6 | Mexico | 45 | 6.6 | 42.2 | 38.3 | 10.1 | 20 |
| 7 | Germany | 37.5 | 7.8 | 34.8 | 28.5 | 22.1 | 144 |
| 8 | United Kingdom | N/D | 37.2 | 30.7 | 21.1 | 389 | |
| 9 | Japan | 36.9 | 47.0 | 25.1 | 3.8 | 560.5 | 1420 |
| 10 | Greece | 36 | 10.1 | 32.7 | 27.8 | 17.6 | 89 |
Africa
In 2024, Africa welcomed approximately 75 million international tourist arrivals, reflecting a strong recovery in the continent’s tourism industry.[5] The top ten African destinations in 2024 were:
| Rank | Destination | International tourist arrivals (2024)[5] |
International tourist arrivals (2023)[6] |
International tourist arrivals (2022)[7] |
Change (2023 to 2024) (%) |
Change (2022 to 2023) (%) |
Change (2021 to 2022) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Morocco | 17.4 million | 14.52 million | 10.87 million | 19.83 | 31.8 | 192.0 |
| 2 | Egypt | 15.7 million | 14.90 million | 11.72 million | 5.37 | 27.13 | 126.0 |
| 3 | Tunisia | 10.25 million | 8.3 million | 6.44 million | 13.3 | 36.6 | 206.0 |
| 4 | South Africa | 8.92 million | 8.5 million | 5.7 million | 5.1 | 48.0 | 148.0 |
| 5 | Algeria | 3.5 million | 3.0 million | 2.2 million | 16.7 | 50.0 | 1,660.0 |
| 6 | Kenya | 2.4 million | 2.0 million | 1.48 million | 22.0 | 31.5 | 70.45 |
| 7 | Tanzania | 2.14 million | 1.8 million | 1.4 million | 18.5 | 24.3 | 57.7 |
| 8 | Seychelles | 1.4 million | 1.3 million | 1.0 million | 7.7 | 30 | 81.6 |
| 9 | Ghana | 1.2 million | 1.0 million | 0.8 million | 17.6 | 25.5 | 46.7 |
| 10 | Rwanda | 1.1 million | 0.9 million | 0.7 million | 7.1 | 37.7 | 95.8 |
Americas
In 2024, there were 213.4 million international tourist arrivals to the Americas, an increase of 6.7% compared to 2023.[8] In 2024, the top ten destinations were:
| Rank | Destination | International tourist arrivals (2024)[9][10] |
International tourist arrivals (2023)[8] |
International tourist arrivals (2022)[8] |
Change (2023 to 2024) (%) |
Change (2022 to 2023) (%) |
Change (2021 to 2022) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 72.4 million | 66.3 million | 50.8 million | 9.1 | 30.4 | 128.3 |
| 2 | Mexico | 45 million | 41.9 million | 38.3 million | 7.4 | 9.5 | 20.3 |
| 3 | Canada | 20 million | 18.3 million | 12.8 million | 8.6 | 43 | 318.8 |
| 4 | Dominican Republic | 8.5 million | 8 million | 7.1 million | 5.9 | 12.5 | 43.4 |
| 5 | Brazil | 6.7 million | 5.9 million | 3.6 million | 14.6 | 62.8 | 386.6 |
| 6 | Argentina | 6.6 million | 7.2 million | 3.8 million | 9.4 | 87.3 | 1207.7 |
| 7 | Colombia | 6.5 million | 5.8 million | 4.5 million | 13.1 | 28.9 | 112.5 |
| 8 | Chile | 5.2 million | 3.7 million | 2 million | 40.4 | 83.7 | 968.5 |
| 9 | Peru | 3.2 million | 2.5 million | 2 million | 29 | 25.6 | 352.2 |
| 10 | El Salvador | 3.1 million | 2.4 million | 1.8 million | 28.6 | 31.1 | 55.1 |
Asia and the Pacific
In 2019, there were 360.7 million international tourist arrivals to Asia-Pacific, an increase of 4.1% over 2018.[8] In 2019, the top ten destinations were:
| Rank | Destination | International tourist arrivals (2023)[11] |
International tourist arrivals (2019)[8] |
International tourist arrivals (2018)[8] |
Change (2018 to 2019) (%) |
Change (2017 to 2018) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 35.3 million[12] | 65.7 million | 62.9 million | 4.5 | 3.6 |
| 2 | Thailand | 28.15 million | 39.8 million | 38.2 million | 4.3 | 7.3 |
| 3 | Japan | 25.07 million | 32.2 million | 31.2 million | 3.2 | 8.7 |
| 4 | Malaysia | 26.1 million | 25.8 million | 1.0 | 0.4 | |
| 5 | Hong Kong | 23.8 million | 29.3 million | 18.8 | 4.9 | |
| 6 | Macau | 18.6 million | 18.5 million | 0.8 | 7.2 | |
| 7 | Vietnam | 18.0 million | 15.5 million | 16.2 | 19.9 | |
| 8 | India | 17.9 million | 17.4 million | 2.8 | 12.1 | |
| 9 | South Korea | 17.5 million | 15.3 million | 14.0 | 15.1 | |
| 10 | Indonesia | 15.5 million | 13.4 million | 15.4 | 3.5 |
Europe
In 2024, there were 747.3 million international tourist arrivals to Europe, an increase of 5.5% over 2023.[8] Top 10 destinations of the last four years were:
| Rank | Destination | International tourist arrivals (2024)[3] |
International tourist arrivals (2023)[3] |
International tourist arrivals (2022) |
Change (2023 to 2024) (%) |
Change (2022 to 2023) (%) |
Change (2021 to 2022) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | France | 102 million | 100 million | 93.2 million | 2 | 7.3 | 92.6 |
| 2 | Spain | 93.8 million | 85.2 million | 71.6 million | 10.1 | 18.9 | 129.8 |
| 3 | Turkey | 60.6 million | 55.2 million | 50.5 million | 9.8 | 9.3 | 68.6 |
| 4 | Italy | 57.9 million | 57.3 million | 49.9 million | 0.8 | 14.9 | 85.7 |
| 5 | United Kingdom | ― | 37.2 million | 30.7 million | ― | 21.1 | 389 |
| 6 | Germany | 37.5 million | 34.8 million | 28.4 million | 7.8 | 22.3 | 143.5 |
| 7 | Greece | 36 million | 32.7 million | 27.8 million | 9.8 | 17.6 | 89.3 |
| 8 | Austria | 32.2 million | 30.9 million | 26.2 million | 4.2 | 17.9 | 106 |
| 9 | Portugal | ― | 26.5 million | 22.2 million | ― | 19.2 | 131.4 |
| 10 | Netherlands | 21.2 million | 20.3 million | 16.1 million | 4.8 | 26.4 | 157.1 |
West Asia
In 2019, there were 61.4 million international tourist arrivals to West Asia (excluding Iran and Israel), an increase of 2.1% over 2018. In 2019, the top ten destinations were:
| Rank | Destination | 2023[11] | 2019[8] | 2018[8] | Change (2018 to 2019) (%) |
Change (2017 to 2018) (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saudi Arabia | 27 | 17.5 | 15.5 | 13.0 | 3.7 |
| 2 | United Arab Emirates | 16.7 | 15.9 | 5.1 | 0.8 | |
| 3 | Egypt | 13.0 | 11.3 | 14.8 | 36.8 | |
| 4 | Iran | 9.1 | 7.3 | 24.4 | 49.9 | |
| 5 | Israel | 4.6 | 4.1 | 10.5 | 14.1 | |
| 6 | Jordan | 4.5 | 4.2 | 8.1 | 8.0 | |
| 7 | Bahrain | 3.8 | 4.4 | 11.8 | 0.2 | |
| 8 | Oman | 2.5 | 2.3 | 8.6 | 0.6 | |
| 9 | Qatar | 2.1 | 1.8 | 17.4 | 19.4 | |
| 10 | Lebanon | 1.9 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 5.8 | |
| Iran is classified as part of "South Asia" in the UNWTO.[13] Israel is classified as part of "Southern/Medit.Europe" in the UNWTO.[13] | ||||||
International tourism receipts
International tourism receipts are the earnings a country makes from foreign visitors' spending on goods and services during their stay, such as expenditures accommodation, food and drink, and shopping. International tourism receipts reached USD 1 trillion in 2022, growing 50% in real terms compared to 2021, driven by the important rebound in international travel.[8] The World Tourism Organization reports the following destinations as the top ten tourism earners for the year 2022, with the United States by far the top earner.
| Rank | Region | 2024 | 2023 | % Change (local currency) (2023 to 2024) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 215.0 | 189.1 | 13.7% |
| 2 | Spain | 106.5 | 92.0 | 15.8% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 84.5 | 73.4 | 15.1% |
| 4 | France | 77.1 | 71.2 | 8.3% |
| 5 | Italy | 58.7 | 55.9 | 5.0% |
| 6 | Turkey | 56.3 | 50.1 | 12.4% |
| 7 | Japan | 53.3 | 38.6 | 38.1% |
| 8 | Australia | 51.8 | 46.1 | 12.4% |
| 9 | Canada | 49.4 | 45.4 | 8.8% |
| 10 | Thailand | 42.7 | 29.7 | 43.8% |
Africa
| Rank | Region | International tourism receipts (US$ million) (2019)[8] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Egypt | 13,030 |
| 2 | South Africa | 8,384 |
| 3 | Morocco | 8,179 |
| 4 | Tanzania | 2,605 |
| 5 | Tunisia | 2,116 |
| 6 | Mauritius | 1,779 |
| 7 | Uganda | 1,463 |
| 8 | Nigeria | 1,449 |
| 9 | Ghana | 1,425 |
| 10 | Kenya | 1,072* |
| Note: Number for Kenya is for 2018. | ||
Americas
| Rank | Region | 2023[9] | 2022 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 189,100 | 142,900 | 71,700 |
| 2 | Canada | 45.4 | 32.0 | 15.4 |
| 3 | Mexico | 30.7 | 28.0 | 19.8 |
| 4 | Dominican Republic | 9.8 | 8.4 | 5.7 |
| 5 | Colombia | 7.6 | 6.2 | 2.7 |
| 6 | Brazil | 6.9 | 5.0 | 2.9 |
| 7 | Panama | 5.5 | 4.7 | – |
| 8 | Argentina | 5.5 | 3.5 | 0.4 |
| 9 | Puerto Rico | 5.4 | 4.6 | 2.8 |
| 10 | Bahamas | 4.8 | 4.2 | 2.3 |
Asia and the Pacific
| Rank | Region | International tourism receipts (US$ million) (2019)[8] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thailand | 60,521 |
| 2 | Japan | 46,054 |
| 3 | Australia | 45,709 |
| 4 | Macau | 40,060 |
| 5 | China | 35,832 |
| 6 | India | 30,720 |
| 7 | Hong Kong | 29,043 |
| 8 | South Korea | 21,628 |
| 9 | Singapore | 20,052 |
| 10 | Malaysia | 19,823 |
Europe
| Rank | Region | International tourism receipts (US$ billion) (2022)[8] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Spain | 72,9 |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 68,2 |
| 3 | France | 59,7 |
| 4 | Italy | 44,3 |
| 5 | Turkey | 41,2 |
| 6 | Germany | 31,5 |
| 7 | Portugal | 22,2 |
| 8 | Austria | 19,2 |
| 9 | Greece | 18,6 |
| 10 | Switzerland | 16,2 |
West Asia
| Rank | Region | International tourism receipts (US$ million) (2019)[8] |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Arab Emirates | 21,800 |
| 2 | Saudi Arabia | 16,382 |
| 3 | Egypt | 13,030 |
| 4 | Lebanon | 8,593 |
| 5 | Israel | 7,600 |
| 6 | Jordan | 5,786 |
| 7 | Qatar | 5,442 |
| 8 | Iran | 4,402* |
| 9 | Bahrain | 3,681 |
| 10 | Iraq | 3,593 |
| Note: Number for Iran is for 2017. | ||
International tourism expenditure
The World Tourism Organization reports the following source markets as the top ten spenders on international tourism for the year 2022 and 2023, with China and the United States being by far the top spenders:
| Rank | Country | International tourism expenditure (2023)[4] |
International tourism expenditure (2022)[3] |
Change (local currency) (2021 to 2022) (%) [3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | $196.5 billion | $114.8 billion | 71.1% |
| 2 | United States | $150.0 billion | $114.9 billion | 30.5% |
| 3 | Germany | $111.9 billion | $89.4 billion | 25.1% |
| 4 | United Kingdom | $110.3 billion | ― | ― |
| 5 | France | $49.0 billion | $47.7 billion | 2.7% |
| 6 | Canada | $38.3 billion | $24.4 billion | 56.9% |
| 7 | Italy | $34.2 billion | $26.5 billion | 29% |
| 8 | India | $33.3 billion | $25.9 billion | 28.5% |
| 9 | Russia | $33.0 billion | ― | ― |
| 10 | South Korea | $27.8 billion | ― | ― |
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "Global and regional tourism performance". www.unwto.org. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
- ^ "World Tourism Barometer" (PDF). World Tourism Organization. 21 May 2024. p. 5. ISSN 1728-9246. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f "International Tourism – 2023 starts on a strong note with the Middle East recovering 2019 levels in the first quarter" (PDF). webunwto.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2023.
- ^ a b "World Tourism Barometer" (PDF). World Tourism Organization. May 2024. p. 19. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
- ^ a b "Africa's 9 most visited countries". Business Insider Africa. 3 March 2025. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
- ^ "Africa News Issue 23". UN Tourism. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
- ^ "UNWTO 2022: A Year in Review". UN Tourism. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "UNWTO World Tourism Barometer and Statistical Annex, December 2020 | World Tourism Organization". UNWTO World Tourism Barometer (English Version). 18 (7): 1–36. 18 December 2020. doi:10.18111/wtobarometereng.2020.18.1.7. S2CID 241989515.
- ^ a b "Global and regional tourism performance". www.unwto.org. Retrieved 26 January 2025.
- ^ "World Tourism Barometer Statistical Annex" (PDF). The World Tourism Organization.
- ^ a b "International tourist arrivals by country 2023". Statista.
- ^ Gan, Nectar (18 January 2024). "Number of foreign visitors to China in 2023 down more than 60% from pre-pandemic levels". CNN. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
- ^ a b "WTO/ Member States of Middle East". World Tourism Organization. Retrieved 16 January 2015.