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. It ranks destinations by the number of international visitor arrivals, by the revenue generated by inbound tourism, and by the expenditure of outbound travelers.

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World Tourism rankings

Countries by tourist arrivals in 2019

Most visited destinations by international tourist arrivals

World Tourism rankings

In 2024, there were 1.45 billion international tourists, with a growth of 11.5% compared to 2023. The top ten destinations were:

<table><thead><tr><th>Destination</th><th>2024</th><th>Change (2023 to 2024) (%)</th><th>2023</th><th>2022</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> France</td><td>102.0</td><td>2</td><td>100</td><td>79.4</td></tr><tr><td> Spain</td><td>93.8</td><td>10.1</td><td>85.2</td><td>71.7</td></tr><tr><td> United States</td><td>72.4</td><td>8.3</td><td>66.5</td><td>50.9</td></tr><tr><td> Turkey</td><td>60.6</td><td>10.5</td><td>55.2</td><td>50.5</td></tr><tr><td> Italy</td><td>57.8</td><td>1.4</td><td>57.2</td><td>49.8</td></tr><tr><td> Mexico</td><td>45.0</td><td>6.6</td><td>42.2</td><td>38.3</td></tr><tr><td> United Kingdom</td><td>41.8</td><td>12.2</td><td>37.2</td><td>30.7</td></tr><tr><td> Germany</td><td>37.5</td><td>7.8</td><td>34.8</td><td>28.5</td></tr><tr><td> Japan</td><td>36.9</td><td>11.8</td><td>25.1</td><td>3.8</td></tr><tr><td> Greece</td><td>36.0</td><td>10.1</td><td>32.7</td><td>27.8</td></tr></tbody></table>

Rankings by continent

Africa

In 2024, Africa welcomed approximately 75.4 million international tourist arrivals, reflecting a strong recovery in the continent’s tourism industry. The top ten African destinations in 2024 were:

<table><thead><tr><th>Destination</th><th>2024</th><th>2023</th><th>2022</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> Morocco</td><td>17.4</td><td>14.5</td><td>10.9</td></tr><tr><td> Egypt</td><td>15.8</td><td>14.9</td><td>11.7</td></tr><tr><td> Tunisia</td><td>10.3</td><td>9.4</td><td>6.4</td></tr><tr><td> South Africa</td><td>8.9</td><td>8.5</td><td>5.7</td></tr><tr><td> Algeria</td><td>3.5</td><td>3.3</td><td>1.4</td></tr><tr><td> Zambia</td><td>2.2</td><td>1.4</td><td>1.1</td></tr><tr><td> Tanzania</td><td>2.1</td><td>1.8</td><td>1.5</td></tr><tr><td> Zimbabwe</td><td>1.6</td><td>1.6</td><td>1.0</td></tr><tr><td> Mauritius</td><td>1.4</td><td>1.3</td><td>1.0</td></tr><tr><td> Uganda</td><td>1.4</td><td>1.3</td><td>0.8</td></tr></tbody></table>

Americas

In 2024, there were 213.4 million international tourist arrivals to the Americas, an increase of 6.7% compared to 2023. In 2024, the top ten destinations were:

<table><thead><tr><th>Destination</th><th>2024</th><th>2023</th><th>2022</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> United States</td><td>72.4</td><td>66.3</td><td>50.8</td></tr><tr><td> Mexico</td><td>45.0</td><td>41.9</td><td>38.3</td></tr><tr><td> Canada</td><td>20.0</td><td>18.3</td><td>12.8</td></tr><tr><td> Dominican Republic</td><td>8.5</td><td>8.0</td><td>7.1</td></tr><tr><td> Brazil</td><td>6.7</td><td>5.9</td><td>3.6</td></tr><tr><td> Argentina</td><td>6.6</td><td>7.2</td><td>3.8</td></tr><tr><td> Colombia</td><td>6.5</td><td>5.8</td><td>4.5</td></tr><tr><td> Puerto Rico</td><td>5.6</td><td>5.0</td><td>4.2</td></tr><tr><td> Chile</td><td>5.2</td><td>3.7</td><td>2.0</td></tr><tr><td> Peru</td><td>3.2</td><td>2.5</td><td>2.0</td></tr></tbody></table>

Asia (incl. West Asia)

<table><thead><tr><th>Destination</th><th>2024</th><th>2023</th><th>2022</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> China</td><td>64.9</td><td>35.5</td><td>―</td></tr><tr><td> Hong Kong</td><td>45.0</td><td>34.0</td><td>0.6</td></tr><tr><td> Japan</td><td>36.9</td><td>25.1</td><td>3.8</td></tr><tr><td> Thailand</td><td>35.5</td><td>28.2</td><td>11.2</td></tr><tr><td> Macau</td><td>34.9</td><td>28.2</td><td>5.7</td></tr><tr><td> Saudi Arabia</td><td>29.7</td><td>27.0</td><td>16.6</td></tr><tr><td> Malaysia</td><td>25.0</td><td>20.1</td><td>10.1</td></tr><tr><td> United Arab Emirates</td><td>18.72</td><td>17.15</td><td>14.36</td></tr><tr><td> Vietnam</td><td>17.5</td><td>12.6</td><td>3.7</td></tr><tr><td> South Korea</td><td>16.4</td><td>11.0</td><td>3.2</td></tr></tbody></table>

Europe (incl. Turkey)

In 2024, there were 747.3 million international tourist arrivals to Europe, an increase of 5.5% over 2023. Top 10 destinations of the last four years were:

<table><thead><tr><th>Destination</th><th>2024</th><th>2023</th><th>2022</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> France</td><td>102.0</td><td>100.0</td><td>93.2</td></tr><tr><td> Spain</td><td>93.8</td><td>85.2</td><td>71.6</td></tr><tr><td> Turkey</td><td>60.6</td><td>55.2</td><td>50.5</td></tr><tr><td> Italy</td><td>57.9</td><td>57.3</td><td>49.9</td></tr><tr><td> United Kingdom</td><td>41.8</td><td>37.2</td><td>30.7</td></tr><tr><td> Germany</td><td>37.5</td><td>34.8</td><td>28.4</td></tr><tr><td> Greece</td><td>36.0</td><td>32.7</td><td>27.8</td></tr><tr><td> Austria</td><td>32.2</td><td>30.9</td><td>26.2</td></tr><tr><td> Portugal</td><td>29.0</td><td>26.5</td><td>22.2</td></tr><tr><td> Netherlands</td><td>21.2</td><td>20.3</td><td>16.1</td></tr></tbody></table>

International tourism receipts

World Tourism rankings

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. In 2024, the top ten destinations were:

<table><thead><tr><th>Region</th><th>2024</th><th>2023</th><th>% Change (local currency) (2023 to 2024)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td> United States</td><td>215.0</td><td>189.1</td><td>13.7%</td></tr><tr><td> Spain</td><td>106.5</td><td>92.0</td><td>15.8%</td></tr><tr><td> United Kingdom</td><td>84.5</td><td>73.4</td><td>15.1%</td></tr><tr><td> France</td><td>77.1</td><td>71.2</td><td>8.3%</td></tr><tr><td> Italy</td><td>58.7</td><td>55.9</td><td>5.0%</td></tr><tr><td> United Arab Emirates</td><td>57.0</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td> Turkey</td><td>56.3</td><td>50.1</td><td>12.4%</td></tr><tr><td> Japan</td><td>54.7</td><td>38.6</td><td>38.1%</td></tr><tr><td> Australia</td><td>52.0</td><td>46.1</td><td>12.4%</td></tr><tr><td> Canada</td><td>49.9</td><td>45.4</td><td>8.8%</td></tr></tbody></table>

International tourism expenditure

World Tourism rankings

The top ten spenders on international tourism for 2024 were:

<table><thead><tr><th>Country</th><th>2024</th><th>2023</th><th>2022</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>China</td><td>250.6</td><td>196.5</td><td>114.8</td></tr><tr><td>United States</td><td>177.8</td><td>150.0</td><td>114.9</td></tr><tr><td>Germany</td><td>120.3</td><td>111.9</td><td>89.4</td></tr><tr><td>United Kingdom</td><td>119.2</td><td>110.3</td><td>―</td></tr><tr><td>France</td><td>60.0</td><td>49.0</td><td>47.7</td></tr><tr><td>Australia</td><td>45.6</td><td></td><td></td></tr><tr><td>Canada</td><td>43.4</td><td>38.3</td><td>24.4</td></tr><tr><td>Russia</td><td>38.9</td><td>33.0</td><td>―</td></tr><tr><td>Italy</td><td>35.7</td><td>34.2</td><td>26.5</td></tr><tr><td>India</td><td>35.0</td><td>33.3</td><td>25.9</td></tr></tbody></table>