In 2023, the total contribution of travel and tourism to the global gross domestic product (GDP) was roughly four percent lower than in 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, the contribution of travel and tourism to the global GDP amounted to 9.9 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. This figure was predicted to reach an estimated 11.1 trillion U.S. dollars in 2024, exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Which countries record the highest travel and tourism contribution to GDP? GDP is the total value of all goods and services produced in a country in a year. It is considered an important indicator of a country's economic strength, and a positive change in GDP is a sign of economic growth. Both before and after the impact of COVID-19, the United States and China were by far the leading travel markets based on the total contribution of travel and tourism to GDP, followed by Germany, the United Kingdom, and Japan. What are the most visited countries in the world? In 2023, the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide increased significantly over the previous year but did not catch up yet with pre-pandemic levels. That year, France was the country with the highest number of international tourist arrivals worldwide, welcoming 100 million international visitors. Spain and the United States followed in the ranking in 2023.

The international market of beach tourism is likely to be the largest driver to the expansion of the tourism sector, owing to the empowerment of tourism infrastructure and the popularity of coastal travel among tourists. The market is projected to be worth USD 171.3 Billion in 2025 and USD 284.3 Billion in 2035, growing at a 5.2% CAGR over the forecast period. Factors such as increasing disposable incomes, better beach destination accessibility, and a tilt toward experiential travel have led to this growth.

Metric	Value
Market Size in 2025	USD 171.3 Billion
Projected Market Size in 2035	USD 284.3 Billion
CAGR (2025 to 2032)	5.2%

Country	CAGR (2025 to 2035)
USA	5.6%

Country	CAGR (2025 to 2035)
UK	4.8%

Country	CAGR (2025 to 2035)
European Union (EU)	5.1%

Country	CAGR (2025 to 2035)
Japan	5.0%

Country	CAGR (2025 to 2035)
South Korea	5.4%

Company Name	Estimated Market Share (%)
Marriott International	10-14%
Hilton Hotels & Resorts	8-12%
Carnival Corporation	6-10%
Hyatt Hotels Corporation	4-8%
Club Med	3-7%
Other Companies (combined)	50-60%

In 2022, the tourism industry contributed around 7.24 percent to Thailand's GDP, which increased from the previous year. In that same period, the total value of Thailand's GDP was almost five hundred billion U.S. dollars. ​ Thailand's tourism industry has been heavily affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it is currently recovering after the government relaxed COVID-19 regulations and promoted tourism. The economic contribution of travel and tourism in Thailand Thailand is recognized as one of the most popular tourist destinations worldwide. ​Travel and tourism play a significant role in supporting Thailand's economy. In 2022, these industries' contribution to the country’s GDP reached over one trillion Thai baht. Thailand's tourism industry also provided nearly seven million jobs in the country, ranking fifth in terms of the highest number of people employed in the tourism industry in the Asia-Pacific region in 2022. Inbound tourism in Thailand Thailand's economy relies heavily on international tourism. The tourist economy of the country has been recovering steadily since the country allowed international tourist arrivals again in 2022. In 2023, Thailand welcomed around 28 million international tourists, which was more than double the previous year. ​In that same year, the total revenue generated by international tourist arrivals in the country reached more than one hundred billion Thai baht on a nearly monthly basis, giving the country a total revenue of over one trillion Thai baht for the entire year.

The United States was the global travel destination with the highest international tourism receipts in 2023. That year, inbound tourism receipts in the U.S. amounted to roughly 189 billion U.S. dollars. While this figure denoted a sharp annual increase, it remained below pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, Spain and the United Kingdom followed in the ranking in 2023, with around 92 billion and 73 billion U.S. dollars, respectively. What are the most visited countries in the world? While France ranked fourth based on international tourism receipts, it topped the list of the countries with the highest number of inbound tourist arrivals worldwide, both before and after the impact of the pandemic. In 2023, France recorded 100 million arrivals by international travelers, while Spain and the United States followed in the ranking with over 85 million and 66 million arrivals, respectively. What is the economic impact of travel and tourism worldwide? As estimated, the total contribution of travel and tourism to GDP worldwide amounted to just under 10 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. This figure refers to the direct, indirect, and induced impacts of these industries. That year, the number of travel and tourism jobs worldwide exceeded 300 million.

The global ecotourism industry worldwide was estimated at 172.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2022. The sector was forecast to reach 374.2 billion U.S. dollars in 2028, registering a growth rate (CAGR) of 13.9 percent.

China was the country with the highest outbound tourism expenditure worldwide in 2023, with Chinese travelers spending 196.5 billion U.S. dollars on outbound trips that year. While this figure represented a sharp annual increase, it remained below the outbound travel expenditure recorded in 2019, the year before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, the United States and Germany followed in the ranking in 2023. Has global tourism recovered from the impact of COVID-19? In 2023, the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide totaled 1.3 billion, growing significantly over the previous year but not catching up yet with the peak in arrivals from 2019. That said, international tourism receipts worldwide exceeded pre-pandemic levels in 2023, peaking at 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars.

What are the most popular regions for inbound tourism worldwide? Both before and after the impact of the pandemic, Europe was the global region with the highest number of international tourist arrivals. In 2023, the number of inbound arrivals in Europe surpassed 700 million. Comparatively, Asia and the Pacific, which recorded the second-highest figure that year, reported around 240 million inbound tourist arrivals.

The global revenue in the 'Travel' segment of the app market was forecast to continuously increase between 2023 and 2027 by in total 0.8 billion U.S. dollars (+64 percent). After the tenth consecutive increasing year, the indicator is estimated to reach two billion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2027. Notably, the revenue of the 'Travel' segment of the app market was continuously increasing over the past years.Find more in-depth information regarding the number of downloads concerning the books & reference segment of the app market worldwide and the revenue concerning the books & reference segment of the app market worldwide. The Statista Market Insights cover a broad range of additional markets.

The global revenue in the 'Cruises' segment of the travel & tourism market was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 11.2 billion U.S. dollars (+26.48 percent). After the eighth consecutive increasing year, the revenue is estimated to reach 53.49 billion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. Find more information concerning Europe and Belgium. The Statista Market Insights cover a broad range of additional markets.

2,8 (billion US dollars) in 2019. US dollar billion, at current prices and exchange rates.

8,6 (billion US dollars) in 2019. US dollar billion, expressed at 2011 prices and exchange rates. This series excludes the effect of price changes and therefore allows for real (volume) changes to be determined.

The size of the wellness market worldwide stood at 6.32 trillion U.S. dollars in 2023. This figure was projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 7.3 percent, reaching an estimated 8.99 trillion U.S. dollars by 2028. What are the leading regions for the wellness market? In 2023, North America emerged as the leading region in the global wellness market, with the region accounting for over 2.1 trillion U.S. dollars of the global market. Asia Pacific and Europe secured second and third positions, respectively. Delving deeper into North America, the wellness industry in the United States outpaced Canada's market size by approximately 1.8 billion U.S. dollars in 2022. How large is the wellness tourism segment? In 2023, the global wellness tourism segment accounted for 830 billion U.S. dollars of the market size of the wellness industry. The countries with the highest wellness tourism expenditure in 2022 were the United States, Germany, and France. Additionally, when considering the number of wellness tourism trips taken by travelers globally in 2022, Europe emerged as the leader, with over 300 million wellness trips taken by travelers in Europe.

In 2023, the global market size of the industry was estimated at 762.8 billion U.S. dollars, a five percent increase in value from the year before. Amid the coronavirus pandemic, the airline industry was one of the most affected businesses worldwide.

The market size of the global space economy in 2023 was 630 billion U.S. dollars, with backbone applications accounting for more than half of the gains. The space industry was estimated to grow even further and generate approximately 1.8 trillion U.S. dollars in 2035, with reach applications projected to have the largest share of 57 percent.

The international tourism receipts in Denmark were forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 5.9 billion U.S. dollars (+8.78 percent). After the sixth consecutive increasing year, the tourism receipts is estimated to reach 73.2 billion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. Receipts denote expenditures by inbound tourists from other countries. Domestic tourism expenditures are not included. The forecast has been adjusted for the expected impact of COVID-19. The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in more than 150 countries and regions worldwide. All input data are sourced from international institutions, national statistical offices, and trade associations. All data has been are processed to generate comparable datasets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the international tourism receipts in countries like Finland and Sweden.

When surveyed in 2022, it was found that Florida and New York were the two most visited states by adults in the United States, having been visited by 61 and 54 percent of respondents, respectively. Although it is not a state, the federal district of Washington, D.C. proved a popular travel destination for respondents, 49 percent of whom claimed to have visited the U.S. capital. In contrast, only 13 percent of respondents said they had visited Alaska, making it the least-visited state.

What is the most visited national park in the U.S.?

With approximately 15.7 million recreational visits in 2022, the Blue Ridge Parkway was the most visited National Park Service park in the United States. The park extends 469 miles through Virginia and North Carolina, connecting the Shenandoah National Park to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Meanwhile, the number of recreational visitors to Yellowstone National Park in 2022 was 3.29 million, down from the previous year’s total of 4.86 million.

How many domestic leisure trips do Americans take?

The number of domestic leisure trips in the U.S. amounted to 1.88 billion in 2022. As estimated, domestic leisure travels in the U.S. dropped to 1.4 billion in 2020. This was due to travel restrictions related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. It is forecast that the number of leisure trips will recover gradually during the following years, reaching two billion by 2026. The number of business trips, by comparison, is forecast to reach 480 million that same year.

The revenue in the 'Flights' segment of the shared mobility market in the United Kingdom was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 7.7 billion U.S. dollars (+29.7 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the indicator is estimated to reach 33.62 billion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. Find other key market indicators concerning the number of users and user penetration. The Statista Market Insights cover a broad range of additional markets.

The statistic represents the distribution of reasons for delayed bags in air travel in 2020. According to SITA, 37 percent of all bags delayed was due to transfer mishandling. Baggage handling In recent years, baggage handling seems to become safer than before, with only 3.5 lost bags per thousand passengers in 2020, and 86 percent decrease in total mishandled baggage since 2007. However, baggage handling also caused a 2.5 billion U.S. dollars expenditure for the aviation industry in 2019, which means there is still promising potential in cost savings. In the U.S., one percent of complaints were filed for baggage-mishandling reasons. Tracking bags have been drawing attention over the past years and several airlines and their partners have been collaborating on the implementation of the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Resolution 753. Effective starting June 2018 and implemented by all IATA’s members, the resolution facilitates the tracking of each bag during its whole journey – from loading the bag into the aircraft to the arrivals and transfers checkpoints, the tracking information will be shared with all participating partners. To make this possible, airlines have to implement scanning technologies, either manual or automatic tag reading (ATR), employing laser or radio frequency identification (RFID) scanning. The approach for implementing RFID comes at high costs-per-tag for the airlines, however, the significant opportunity to grant passengers the ability to track their luggage like a parcel is an advantage. Airports will benefit from faster and more accurate processes, and therefore from an increase in baggage-handling efficiency.

In 2024, global government expenditure for space programs hit a record of approximately 135 billion U.S. dollars. The United States Government spent around 79.7 billion U.S. dollars on its space programs in than year, making it the country with the highest space expenditure in the world. The U.S. was followed by China, with government expenditure on space programs of over 19 billion U.S. dollars. The Space Agencies Responsible for civilian space programs, as well space research and exploration, the space agencies have gained in importance over the past decades. Today, there are six government space agencies (NASA, CNSA, ROSCOSMOS, ESA, ISRO, and JAXA) with full launch and extraterrestrial landing capabilities. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is undoubtedly the most renowned of them all. Since its establishment in 1958, NASA has worked with international partners to enable human expansion across the solar system and beyond, bringing new knowledge and opportunities back to our home planet. It is therefore not surprising that most of their budget goes to toward science and exploration. NASA’s requested FY 2024 budget for all sectors is 27.2 billion U.S. dollars.

The absolute economic contribution of tourism in Qatar was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 6.6 billion U.S. dollars (+35.76 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the economic contribution is estimated to reach 24.9 billion U.S. dollars and therefore a new peak in 2029. Depited is the economic contribution of the tourism sector in the country or region at hand.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the absolute economic contribution of tourism in countries like Saudi Arabia and Oman.